Sparta BOE revises rules for challenging 'sexualized' library materials after debate

SPARTA — The Sparta Board of Education approved two revised policies aimed at "lewd or vulgar" content in school district libraries, but with revisions that appeared to allow school officials more freedom to keep materials in circulation.

The board's vote Thursday night followed a public comment session in which roughly a dozen speakers weighed in on the second reading of Policies 2530, titled "Resource Materials," and 9130, "Public Complaints and Grievances." Both were first advanced at a tense meeting last month.

Some who criticized the original proposals at that meeting said Thursday that the edits were at least a step in the right direction. The revisions generally softened a focus on "sexualized content" in the original and added that school officials must balance concerns about sex and profanity with a book's literary and educational value.

Still, many in Thursday's audience said they remained concerned that the updated rules make it easier to censor materials.

"Let me be clear: parents certainly have the right to decide what they wish their child to read," said Angela DeLuccia, a media specialist in the Sparta High School library and president of the district teachers union. "But they do not have the right to make that decision for others, nor do they have the right to limit the autonomy of others and put school employees and members, especially librarians, in the middle."

'Really not' about censorship, attorney says

Proponents say the measures clarify the role of school libraries in the curriculum and promote parental involvement in children's education. They noted the revisions update regulations that had not been reviewed since 1999. Board attorney Mark Zitomer denied the polices were about censorship.

"It's really not," he said. "It's a policy about making sure that we have age-appropriate books in each of our school libraries, whether we're talking about elementary school, middle school or high school."

The school board voted 7-1 to enact the changes, with Wendy Selander the lone vote in opposition and Craig Palleschi not in attendance. Selander said that while she believes policies on library materials do need to be modernized, she felt there should have been more collaborative discussion before a vote took place.

"There was a lot of time spent on it. I just wish that we would have come to something that the board and the educational experts both agreed upon before I would give it my 'yes' vote," Selander said.

Board member Lauren Collier said the board collaborated with Sparta administrators and school media specialists prior to drafting the updated policy. The committee had hoped to have more meetings, she said, but did not have adequate time before the end of the school year.

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What the new policies change

The "Public Complaints and Grievances" document was unchanged from last month. It features revisions to the process to file and review complaints about resource materials, notably the addition of two board members to a committee of staff and administrators assigned to evaluate the work.

The "Resource Materials" policy, however, included numerous edits from the one introduced at last month's board meeting, ranging from minor word changes to adding and deleting entire paragraphs.

Among the most notable changes to Policy 2530: The final version declared materials in middle and high school libraries should not contain "pervasive" lewd or vulgar content, whereas the original revision included any lewd or vulgar content. The update also removes a paragraph stating the district would "prioritize inclusion of resource materials suitable for educational goals that do not contain sexualized content."

The new version asks library media specialists to consider the educational value of works discussing religion and ideologies along with sexual themes when selecting resource materials. It notes that many culturally significant pieces of literature "contain isolated elements to which some individuals may object."

"The fact of sexual incidents or profanity appearing shall not automatically disqualify a book," the policy states. "The decision shall be made on the basis of whether a book presents life in its true proportions, whether circumstances are realistically dealt with, and whether a book is of literary value."

Mixed reviews from teachers

Brent Rivers, Sparta's supervisor of English and language arts in grades 6-12, said he was "relieved" to see some clarifications on what is and is not allowed in school library materials. However, he said he and other staff members had concerns that a single parent could determine what all students are able to read by having books removed.

"The unpredictability in this policy creates confusion," Rivers said. "How do we know which isolated elements will be protected? Which ones will not? Will it change with each new iteration of the board? These questions create uncertainty, and uncertainty creates tension."

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DeLuccia, the Sparta High School media specialist, called the policy changes "misguided and dangerous." Librarians have extensive training, she said, and should be trusted to know what is and is not appropriate for each grade level.

Will book challenges be public?

The updates require the district to annually publish a list of resource materials added to and removed from the school library during the previous 12 months. Additionally, the district must make materials "readily available for parental review" on an online database.

Jen Hamilton, a Sparta parent and former board member, asked the board to also consider adding language to the policies requiring the district to inform the public when a book is being challenged.

Zitomer, the school board attorney, responded that Hamilton's suggestion was considered, but officials felt such a move would have a "chilling effect" on people coming forward to challenge materials. He said the revisions were being "unfairly attacked" as advocating for book bans.

Collier added that the new policies help create a "framework" to guide the board in determining which books are available to which age groups.

"The idea is not to make it so explicitly defined that you can't work within the policy. There's room for interpretation in here," she said. "The intention of this policy is not to preclude, but to prioritize."

Kyle Morel is a local reporter covering Morris and Sussex counties.

Email: kmorel@njherald.com; Twitter: @KMorelNJH

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Sparta BOE adopts revised library resource policy changes