Matanuska-Susitna Borough official keeps three challenged books on shelves, LCAC sets monthly review order

Matanuska-Susitna Borough Community Development Director Jillian Morrissey announced a final administrative decision to keep three books challenged by residents in borough library collections but to reshelve those titles to the adult section.

Morrissey said she based the decision on the MSB Library's Collection Development Policy, the LCAC meeting recordings and scorecards, circulation statistics and legal counsel. "These final decisions have been made following comprehensive legal counsel with careful consideration of the dispositions provided by the Citizens Advisory Group," Morrissey read into the record. She added, "the books ... shall remain in borough libraries and will be reshelved to the adult collection."

The decision applies to three titles specifically identified in Morrissey’s memo as The Haters, Damsel, and Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation. Morrissey described circulation data for the titles, noting Damsel was first acquired in 2018 and is available at three libraries with a consistent checkout rate, while the other two titles also showed continued, if limited, usage. She also said none of the three had been reviewed by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District's LCAC, and that the MSBSD had removed one title from its review list earlier because catalog records showed…