The district recognizes that the school library is the principal location for students to inquire, to study and evaluate, and to gain new maturity and understanding. The board delegates to the superintendent or designee the authority to select library and resource materials in accordance with this policy. Selection of materials for school libraries will generally be made in consultation with librarians, administrators and educators, and may allow for input from students, parents/guardians, and patrons of the district, consistent with students’ First Amendment constitutional rights.
DEFINITIONS
For purposes of this policy and accompanying procedures (652P), the following definitions shall apply:
“Challenge” means a formal request that a specific library resource be permanently removed from one or more of the schools operated by the district or restricted from access by minors.
“Community Member” means a person who is a full-time resident of the district though such person need not be a property taxpayer.
“Harmful to Minors” includes in its meaning the quality of any material or of any performance or of any description or representation, in whatever form, of nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or sado-masochistic abuse, when it:
(a) Appeals to the prurient interest of minors as judged by the average person, applying contemporary community standards; and
(b) Depicts or describes representations or descriptions of nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or sado-masochistic abuse which are patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community with respect to what is suitable material for minors and includes, but is not limited to, patently offensive representations or descriptions of:
(i) Intimate sexual acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated; or
(ii) Masturbation, excretory functions or lewd exhibition of the genitals or genital area.
Nothing in this definition is intended to include or proscribe any matter which, when considered as a whole, and in context in which it is used, possesses serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.
“Library Resource” means any specific book, pamphlet, electronic media, etc. contained in a library’s inventory of materials.
“Material” means anything tangible which is harmful to minors, whether derived through the medium of reading, observation or sound.
“Parent” means the mother, father, or legal guardian of a student currently enrolled in a school operated by the district, including open enrolled students.
“Student” means a person currently enrolled as a pupil in a school operated by the district.
OBJECTIVES
- The district will maintain a comprehensive district-wide media program that will provide access to large and varied collections of materials on all levels of difficulty with a diversity of appeal and the presentation of different points of view that will also enrich and support the curriculum and personal needs of the users;
- Notwithstanding any other provision of law or district policy, schools within the district will not promote, give, or make available to a minor any of the following:
a. Any picture, photograph, drawing, sculpture, motion picture film, or similar visual representation or image of a person or portion of the human body that depicts nudity, sexual conduct, or sado-masochistic abuse and that is harmful to minors;
b. Any book, pamphlet, magazine, printed matter however produced, or sound recording that contains any matter as described in subsection 2(a) above or explicit and detailed verbal descriptions or narrative accounts of sexual excitement, sexual conduct, or sado-masochistic abuse and that, taken as a whole, is harmful to minors; or
c. Any other material harmful to minors. - To the extent any school within the district maintains material harmful to minors, school employees will take reasonable steps to restrict access to such material by minors. Such steps may include, but are not limited to, maintaining such material (a) in a locked cabinet or closet where access to such cabinet or closet is restricted to a school librarian, building principal, or other designated staff; or (b) in a designated “adults only” section, which section is monitored by a school employee or otherwise reasonably restricted from access by minors, including by requiring any person seeking access to such adults only section display a driver’s license, draft card, birth certificate, or other official or apparently official document purporting to establish that the person is 18 years of age or older. School employees may allow a minor to access material that is harmful to minors when the minor is accompanied by his or her parent or legal guardian, or by another adult who represents that he or she is the minor’s parent or legal guardian by a signed written statement.
- Nothing in this policy is intended to proscribe any material which, when considered as a whole, and in the context in which it is used, possesses serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.
- Selection of library resources will be made by school librarians, taking into account the needs of teachers and students, and will follow the accreditation standards and procedures set forth by the Idaho State Board of Education and compiled as the Idaho Standards for Teacher Librarians;]
- Gifts of materials, or funds for the media program, if accepted, will be used with no commitment regarding their use. Such materials will be evaluated by the librarian, using the same criteria as materials selected with school district funds. Final disposition of a gift is the responsibility of the librarian in accordance with the needs and best interest of the schools.
SELECTION CRITERIA
In selecting library resources, the school librarian shall utilize professional resources that provide guidance for ensuring that such resources meet and maintain the highest standards of quality and reflect current awareness of the library field. In making library resource decisions, school librarians or other persons responsible for selecting library resources will make decisions utilizing guidance from the school library selection criteria recommended by the American Library Association as well as the Idaho Standards for Teacher Librarians to ensure that such resources:
1. Meet high standards in literary, artistic, and aesthetic quality; technical aspects; and physical format;
2. Support and enrich the curriculum and/or students’ personal interests and learning;
3. Are appropriate for the subject area and for the age, emotional development, ability level, learning styles, and social, emotional, and intellectual development of the students for whom the library resources are selected;
4. Incorporate accurate and authentic factual content from authoritative sources;
5. Earn favorable reviews in standard reviewing sources and/or favorable recommendations based on preview and examination of materials by professional personnel;
6. Represent differing viewpoints on controversial issues;
7. Include a variety of resources in physical and virtual formats including print and non-print such as electronic and multimedia (including subscription databases and other online products, e-books, educational games, and other forms of emerging technologies); and
8. Balance cost with need.
School library resource decisions will also consider the following criteria:
- The authenticity will be reviewed, taking into account the accuracy and timeliness of the material. The qualifications of the author or producer will also be taken into account.
- The appropriateness of the material will be reviewed regarding whether the medium is appropriate to the subject matter and whether the vocabulary, content, concepts, and themes are suited to the intended audience.
- The context will be reviewed regarding whether the organization and presentation relate to the needs of the student and are helpful to the user.
- The interest regarding the message contained and the ability to hold the attention of the user should also be taken into account.
- The technical quality such as the format, audiovisual qualities, and ease of handling should be considered.
SELECTION REVIEW RESOURCES
In selecting library resources, school librarians shall use well-established and highly respected school library reviewing sources, which may include the following:
1. Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) Notable Children’s Books;
2. Booklist;
3. School Library Journal; or
4. Young Adult Services Association (YALSA) Best Books for Young Adults.
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LEGAL REFERENCE:
Idaho Code Sections
18-1514 – Obscene Materials – Definitions
18-1517B – Children’s School and Library Protection
33-512(8) – School Governance (libraries)
Board of Educ., Island Trees Union Free v. Pico, 102 S. Ct. 2799 (1982)
ADOPTED: July 16, 2024
AMENDED:
ATTACHMENT: 652F (Library and Resource Center Materials – Challenge Form)