School librarians risk committing a crime if they loan out materials that are considered 鈥渉armful to minors鈥�, the Florida Department of Education has warned.
The state Board of Education Wednesday to discuss and vote on aimed at increasing scrutiny of library books 鈥� and the new guidance for district staff is to 鈥渆rr on the side of caution鈥� when selecting books for school libraries.
The training for librarians is part of the Department of Education鈥檚 implementation of a that requires certified media specialists to choose school library materials, including for classroom libraries, which are often passion projects for teachers who curate their own collections.
Previously, other district staff could choose school library books, at a time when many schools have to save money. School media specialists meanwhile have specialized training and advanced education in the development, management and organization of library collections.
Among the directives up for the state board's approval is that media specialists avoid books that contain 鈥渦nsolicited theories that may lead to student indoctrination.鈥�
鈥淚t is good practice to assess whether or not you as an adult making book selection decisions would be comfortable reading aloud the material in question in a public meeting,鈥� a narrator said in a state-issued training video.
鈥淚f you would not be comfortable reading the material in a public setting, then you should lean towards not making the material available in a public school library for children,鈥� the narrator adds.
In the training video, librarians are warned multiple times that if the books they choose are deemed to contain 鈥渁ny description or representation of nudity, sexual conduct or sexual excitement鈥� in violation of state law, that could be a felony.
鈥淧lease remember, a violation of the is a crime,鈥� the training video narrator said.
According to the state guidance, among the criteria needed for a book to be considered 鈥渉armful鈥� is that 鈥渢aken as a whole the material is without serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors鈥�.
Under the proposed standards, districts also have to report which materials parents or residents have objected to that year. Media specialists are directed to review the list of books that have been removed or flagged, and "carefully consider them before purchasing."
The state board will take public comment on the proposal at a meeting Wednesday beginning at 9 am.
It comes as school districts across Florida are already under increased pressure from state lawmakers and conservative activists following the passage of a restricting classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation if it鈥檚 not considered 鈥渁ge-appropriate or developmentally appropriate."
In , books featuring LGBTQ characters or issues related to the queer experience have been flagged or even pulled off shelves, after activists claimed the titles are inappropriate or obscene.
In Sarasota County, the school district blocked hundreds of dictionaries donated by a local Rotary Club from reaching students due to concerns about the increased scrutiny of library books and instructional materials, according to the .
