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Forum candidates back age-appropriate curation of school libraries, differ on parental control and removal processes
Summary
Candidates agreed schools should curate materials and keep explicit content out of school libraries, but differed on how much parental control and formal review processes should govern access to certain books.
Candidates at the Academy School District 20 forum agreed that school libraries should be curated for age-appropriateness and that sexually explicit material should not be available to students, but they differed on parental-control mechanics and review procedures.
"Schools have the duty and the right to curate content for students," Holly Tripp said, adding that explicit sexual or violent materials and instructional "how-to" content do not belong in the school environment. "Those kinds of conversations belong in the home," Tripp added.
Other candidates stressed trained librarians and established review processes. Renee Malloy Ludlam and Brandon Clark said librarians and educators should make age-appropriate determinations and warned against broad bans that could sweep classic literature into removal. "Our librarians are trained professionals," Ludlam said. "Of course we need to have age appropriate, not explicit, age-appropriate literary sources for students to have access to."
Several candidates referenced the district's formal complaint process for challenged materials. Susan Payne described a formal district review procedure that allows complaints about library books to be logged and reviewed; she said curation should focus on literary value and academic usefulness. "When we're curating books in District 20, I think it's important that we look at, do they have literary value? Do they help expand their ability to academically learn?" Payne said.
Other candidates, including Cynthia Halverson and Eddie Waldrop, expressed stronger parental-control rhetoric and said explicit sexual material has no place in school libraries. Halverson said some books in district libraries violated parental authority and should be removed; Waldrop said sexually explicit materials should not be present in schools and said Shakespeare and other classics would not be implicated by removing explicit content.
The district's existing policy requires a review process for complaints, and candidates largely agreed schools should maintain age-appropriate collections while ensuring parents can access opt-in or opt-out controls where applicable.
