CURRICULUM, LIBRARY BOOKS, COMMITTEES – BOARD MEETING UPDATE 2/27/23

We did it! Finally!!!

Fl Statute 1006.28 identifies the role of a school board member pertaining to instructional materials. In part it states, the school board’s constitutional responsibility is to select and provide adequate instructional materials for ALL students. We are also responsible for establishing a process for objections to state and non-state adopted materials including school library media resources.

1. School Boards are responsible for the content of instructional materials, library materials, and any other materials either by adoption of otherwise purchased or made available.

2. School Boards must adopt a policy regarding an objection by a parent or a resident of the county to the use of a specific instructional material, which clearly describes a process to handle all objections and provides for resolution.

3. The process must provide the parent or resident the opportunity to proffer evidence to the district school board that any material used in a classroom, made available in a school library, or included on a reading list DOES NOT contain content that is pornographic or prohibited under 847.012. This content is NOT suited to students needs, would not align with our standards, would not be age and grade level appropriate.

After months of working to write and edit the policies 2520 and 2522 addressing the requirements in statute including the mandatory Department of Education library media center training, we finally voted last night to adopt these policies and procedures. They PASSED!

Policy 2520 is the Selection and Adoption of Instructional Materials, Library Media Materials, or Reading List Materials.

Policy 2522 is the Objection to Adoption or use of Instructional, Library Media, or Reading List Materials

Both policies include procedures for vetting and removing inappropriate unlawful content from either our curriculum or libraries.

The mandated DOE training and the statutes I have quoted for more than a year are clear…
No pornography.
No sexually graphic content.
No unsolicited theories or strategies such as critical race theory, restorative justice practices, or social and emotional learning.

These two policies and procedures are comprehensive. One policy establishes guidelines for the objection committee that is fair and transparent. Both create an understanding of what is allowed and not allowed. Both support a parent or citizen’s right to provide grievance if needed and empower administrators and teachers to make curriculum and reading materials age and grade level appropriate as well as suitable in content while supporting our standards.

THANK YOU to everyone who supported this work.

If you are interested in viewing the mandatory DOE Library Media Center Training click here -> https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20562/urlt/8-6.pdf

The training transcript (slide by slide) click here -> https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/5574/urlt/LibrMedTrainTrans.pdf

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