The Frederick County Board of Education recently approved a new policy regarding its school libraries in a 4-2 vote.
The policy in question, Policy 501, disallows the Frederick County Public Schools system from excluding materials from its school libraries because of the author’s background, or because of ideological or religious disagreement regarding the materials’ subject matter.
The policy was initially approved by the school board’s policy committee last May and first read by the board five months later in October. However, three of the seven current board members had not been elected at that point, so a second vote Feb. 26 was necessary.
This policy comes at a pivotal moment for schools across the United States. Book bans have been on the rise over the past few years, according to the American Library Association. Some parents believe that schools should not allow books deemed inappropriate for children, but the definition of what is deemed appropriately can vary greatly depending on the area and specific parents. Some books are banned for containing content deemed adult or sexual, such as “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky and “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” by Judy Blume. Others are targeted for banning because they focus on LGBTQ+ individuals, people of color or different religious identities.
The fight over whether books should be banned or not has raged on for years, with recent executive orders complicating things by demanding the shutdown and removal of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives across the country.
It is still possible for books to be contested by members of the community, but not for reasons relating to the opinions or identity of the author. The FCPS school system is also implementing a new program where parents can choose books they would prefer their child to not check out so they can enforce their own boundaries for what reading materials are appropriate for their children without affecting other children’s learning experiences.
Rae Gallagher, president of the FCPS Board of Education, noted that this policy was influenced in part by the passage of the Freedom to Read Act. The statewide law ended book bans in libraries that receive state funding. Policy 501 implements some of the same language used in the Freedom to Read Act.
“We were in the process of updating our policies around that Act, and to more broadly set the vision about how materials are purchased and approved,” Gallagher explains.
Gallagher voted in favor of the policy, along with fellow board members Janie Inglis Monier, Dean Rose and Karen Yoho. Members Nancy Allen and Jamie Brennan opposed it, and the board’s final member, Colt Black, was not present to vote on the policy.
Gallagher adds that this policy is meant to promote diversity and cross-cultural understanding by having a large selection of narratives from different cultures and backgrounds available for reading, without fear of having these materials banned due to ideological disputes.
“From my perspective, the goal was that our media and book selection process should be inclusive and broad, so students from diverse backgrounds, cultures and experiences can see themselves reflected in our books,” Gallagher says. “This also supports our educational goals as a school district, and to me, the most important aspect is that we foster a love of reading in our students.”
