Reviewing challenges to library books can be time consuming for school officials. Assistant Director of Schools Tony Clower gave a report on the issue at last month’s Roane County Board of Education meeting.
Clower said the policy requires the Reconsideration of Materials Committee to read challenged books in their entirety.
“Not just sections, not just two words, the whole thing,” Clower said. “We’ve gotten complaints on books that are 652 pages long. It takes some time.”
Clower said the committee has 11 members appointed by him and the committee had met nine times.
“Some of the things we’ve heard is that we’re not doing anything,” Clower said. “That’s not the case. Nine meetings have occurred with that committee.”
Some members of the community have taken issue with some of the books in school libraries. Several have spoken out about it at school board meetings in recent months.
“The whole thing has to be read,” Clower said. “We can’t just make a decision in five seconds, 15 seconds, 30 minutes. The whole thing has to be read.”
Clower said 151 complaint forms had been received, 63 books had been reviewed and 24 books had been removed.
“This committee has worked tirelessly,” Clower said. “There are two community members on that committee. The rest are school employees, librarians, teachers, a principal.”
Eighty-eight books were still in review, according to the information Clower provided at the meeting.
“My point is this, this committee is working hard,” Clower said. “They’ll continue to work hard and continue to work on doing what needs to be done as far as what the complaints state and the response that needs to be given for those particular books.”
Alyvia Bitterly, a junior at Roane County High School, addressed the school board again on the issue during the public comment portion of last month’s meeting. She had a policy suggestion for the school board.
“The librarians have the ability to flag students, which means they can be censored from books that their parents or guardians do not want them to read,” she said last month. “My compromise is either having the parents at the beginning of the year sign a paper that blacklists their students from reading books with sensitive topics, according to the parents.”
Bitterly said that could alleviate some of the stress the library community is facing.
“And it will be up to the parent and the child and no one else,” she said.
Board Member Larry Brackett said he was dismayed that some adults who attended the meeting were heckling Bitterly as she spoke.
“Bad job for taunting a high school kid behind her back,” Brackett said.
“I’m a little embarrassed for the high school student because this is the second month and I didn’t say nothing about it last time,” he added.
