Libraries, in schools and in the community, are full of mysteries, both fictional and actual. For many, there is also a mystery in how libraries operate, and the Kingston City School District (KCSD) is hoping to change that.
Late last month, KCSD assistant director of secondary humanities Laura Sagan gave a presentation to the Board of Education focusing primarily on library materials in grades K-12, a five-step process that begins with identifying books and other materials that might be of value to students, and includes addressing parental and community concerns.
Selection is guided by Board of Education Policy No. 4513, which directs library and media center staff to consider books that provide information that enriches and supports curriculum, taking into consideration varied interests, abilities and maturity levels of students; books that provide information that stimulates growth in factual knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic values and ethical standards; provide information that helps enable students to make intelligent judgments in their lives; and in the case of controversial issues, provide information on opposing sides to give students an opportunity to develop the practice of critical reading and thinking.
The policy also addresses the district’s DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) efforts by asking that materials provide information representative of the religious, ethnic, and cultural groups who’ve contributed to American heritage; include characters and settings which reflect the racial, ethnic, cultural and religious makeup of both the student body and the United States; maintains a diverse library collection including works by authors and illustrators who represent that diversity; promote the understanding and appreciation of culture, class, language, race, ethnicity and other differences which are part of the fabric of a global civilization; and which recognizes and promotes an understanding and appreciation of diversity by providing a balanced perspective representing members of the LBGTQIA+ community and their allies, indigenous voices, religious beliefs and other attributes which reflect American culture.
“How do they make this a reality?” said Sagan of the library media specialists who work in all the district’s schools. “Our librarians are very dedicated to this policy…They do this without personal opinion, without bias, without prejudice to provide high quality materials, mostly books, but also other types of materials that students might need they have access to that are suitable for all of our students K through 12.”
Another consideration is demand. If students or staff are asking for a specific book, for example, the district looks into it. And they also research the books which win the various literary awards during a given year.
With new books and other materials constantly coming in, Sagan said, KCSD libraries have to engage in the time-honored tradition of weeding.
“We of course look for books that have been damaged,” Sagan said. “A lot of times books go home and they don’t come back in the condition in which they left library. They come back with water damage, they come colored in, written in, pages are torn. Sometimes books are so much in demand that they get very soiled and torn, and then we have to figure out how we’re going to replace those books.”
Books are also weeded when the information provided therein becomes outdated, or is no longer supported by district curriculum. Library media specialists also run reports, and materials can be weeded if they haven’t been checked out in a long time.
Library materials are also subject to review if a parent registers a complaint, which is first done informally by notifying the school librarian where the book is housed.
“And very often issues are taken care of right there at that particular level,” Sagan said.
If a parent or guardian is unsatisfied with the result, they can consult the school principal or other administrator. The process becomes formalized if the informal approach doesn’t settle the issue with the parent filling out a form, with the material investigated by a designee of the district superintendent. A committee may also review the request, with the group comprised of at least one elementary teacher, a secondary teacher, an elementary librarian, a secondary librarian, a member of the community and the district’s director of DEI.
The review committee will study the material in question; consider the objections raised by the complainant; weigh the values and faults of the material, including its selection; consider other information about the book or other material, and will report back to the superintendent.
The superintendent then renders a decision, which may be appealed by the school board if they wish. Whether the school board agrees or disagrees with the superintendent, that is the end of the line, and materials in question cannot be submitted for a reevaluation for another five years at a minimum.
Parental rights don’t begin or end with the complaint process in the KCSD. The district is guided by the Council of the American Library Association, which states, “We affirm the responsibility and the right of all parents and guardians to guide their own children’s use of the library and its resources and services.”
“We take a pretty strong stance on that,” Sagan said. “We believe it’s a responsibility and the right of all parents and guardians to guide their own child’s use of the library and its resources and services.”
Books in the library are read on a voluntary basis and can be vetted by parents, who can restrict the reading of any book by their own child.
“All they need to do is notify the school in writing,” said Sagan. “Email is fine: ‘I don’t want my child to be reading this book.’ And the librarians make a note it in our system…and every time a child goes to check out a book that note comes up and the librarian says, ‘No, this is a book you can’t read, we’re going to put it aside. Let’s go check out a new one.’”
Sagan said the system isn’t perfect, but is at about “99.9 percent.”
“Do we have books that get through? Sometimes, yes, because we’re not perfect,” Sagan said. “But we’re getting better.”
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