[Libs-Or] News To Use: Strong School Libraries, Part 1: Book Challenges

[OLA President]

News To Use: Strong School Libraries, Part 1: Book Challenges

June 4, 2022

News to Use
<https://www.olaweb.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=199#NewstoUse>
is a series of messages from the Oregon Library Association’s Library
Development and Legislation Committee (LDLC) about policy and advocacy
topics of interest to the Oregon library community.

Over the next few months, we will be providing information about the
condition of Oregon’s school libraries and suggesting advocacy activities
for members of the broader Oregon library community. This first installment
tackles the issue of book challenges.

What’s Happening?
Schools across the country are facing unprecedented numbers of challenges
to books that draw attention to the voices of underrepresented groups,
including those that explore LGBTQ+ and students of color experiences.
Research by PEN America has found that 41 percent of books banned in the US
in the last nine months have featured protagonists of color, while 31
percent included LGBTQ+ topics or LGBTQ+ characters, with 7 percent of this
latter figure featuring trans characters and topics. Campaigns funded by
national groups are encouraging local parents to draw attention to specific
books deemed “pornographic” or “controversial” and ask for their removal
from school libraries.

Schools without teacher librarians or certified school library staff are
particularly vulnerable to book challenges. Seeking to avoid controversy,
some school administrators may remove books without

sufficient knowledge of standard policies for book selection and
reconsideration processes.

In Oregon, 75% of school districts are without professionally trained /
licensed librarians
<https://libslide.org/data-tools/custom-search/?saved=25bp>.
[image: Map showing which Oregon school districts have Librarian FTE in
2020-21]

(Green indicates school districts with librarian FTE, 2020-21. Dark gray
areas indicate no data available. Source: SLIDE Study
<https://libslide.org/data-tools/custom-search/?saved=25bp>)

Also, Oregon is among the 10 states with the greatest losses of teacher
librarians
<https://www.slj.com/story/school-libraries-2021-advocacy-is-necessary-part-of-the-job-for-school-librarians>
in the last decade.

[image: Map of states that lost the most librarians from 2009-10 to 2018-19]

(Source: School Libraries 2021: Advocacy is a Necessary Part of the Job for
School Librarians, School Library Journal, November 2021.
<https://www.slj.com/story/school-libraries-2021-advocacy-is-necessary-part-of-the-job-for-school-librarians>
)


Why Should You Care?

While it is important to address parental concerns, removing books from
school library collections without following adequate reconsideration
procedures can lead to inhibited access for students who really benefit
from reading books that reflect their lived experiences. As emphasized in
the Oregon Intellectual Freedom Committee’s Toolkit
<https://libguides.osl.state.or.us/iftoolkit/home>, the key for any library
when facing book challenges is preparation. It is important to have
policies in place that help guide the selection of materials for the
library collection, including a procedure to follow when a complaint is
filed. The presence of teacher librarians helps assure strong school
district policies are already in place and established procedures are
followed.

What can I do?

Ask questions about your local school district’s policies related to
library book selection and reconsideration. Are they on the district’s
website? Have they been updated in the last 5 years? If not, talk to
administrators, parent groups, and teachers about how certified school
library staff can help create strong library collections and policies to
help mitigate the impact of book challenges.

Seek out the library staff at your local school or school district and give
them your support. Find out if there are professionally trained, licensed
librarians in their school libraries. Ask them if they have experience with
book challenges and if they have the resources and support they need to
address them. Help them connect to resources, such as those included
in the Intellectual
Freedom 101 webinar
<https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vScSwXNzxbdcCpwoJ69Swih2EFWwudvSYhYF2ZVbeF2BdoK2W6tmhGQaY-xziw0i0BFfzm3LmmJJ7I5/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000>
provided by the State Library and the Oregon Association of School
Libraries (OASL).

Want to learn more or get more involved?

Guidance to School Districts: Addressing Challenged Materials in K-12
Education
<https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1k6GdjBgHy33SBNWhT_dj3b_q6Nm19mb->
(Oregon Department of Education)

School Libraries Are Essential
<https://ilovelibraries.org/school-libraries/>  and Advocate for School
Libraries
<https://ilovelibraries.org/school-libraries/you-can-be-an-advocate/>
(ALA’s I Love Libraries campaign)

State of School Libraries in Oregon: Challenges and Successes
<https://journals3.library.oregonstate.edu/olaq/article/view/vol26_iss2_5/6501>
(article by Jen Maurer, OLA Quarterly, Vol. 26 No. 2 (2020
<https://journals3.library.oregonstate.edu/olaq/issue/view/vol26_iss2>))

OASL’s Advocacy Toolkit
<https://sites.google.com/OASL.olaweb.org/oasladvocacytoolkit/#h.p_hPUFsK1RPU6l>
is a fantastic place to learn more about how to advocate for strong school
libraries. If you would like to get involved, please reach out to members
of the OASL Advocacy Committee at oasl-advocacy at googlegroups.com .


-- 
Arlene Weible
Oregon Library Association President, 2021-2022
olapresident at olaweb.org


-- 
Arlene Weible
Oregon Library Association President, 2021-2022
olapresident at olaweb.org
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