State board wants final say on books in S.C. school libraries

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - The South Carolina Board of Education voted on a regulation that would give the board control over what books are in school libraries.

Pending approval by the General Assembly, the decision to ban books in public schools would rest on the state board.

Right now, if someone believes the material in a school library is inappropriate, they can file a complaint with the school district and its board, and their challenge generally ends with the local board’s decision.

If this new regulation proposed by the South Carolina Department of Education is enacted as it’s currently written, the complainant would be able to appeal the local decision to the State Board of Education.

The state board would then have the final say over whether that book can be on shelves in the district where it was challenged – and in every other school library across the state – because their ruling would apply statewide.

The regulation outlines a two-prong test to determine if materials are okay: They must be “educationally suitable and aligned with the purpose of South Carolina’s instructional program.” That means the materials must be age and developmentally appropriate, the regulation says.

This would strip local school boards of their authority to decide what books can be in their schools based on that school’s community standards.

Those in favor suggest having state oversight would help facilitate appropriate content for children.

Those against said this regulation would hinder their ability to decide what educational material they feel their students should or should not be able to read.

“How many fatherless children will there be? How many abandoned children will there be? We are the gatekeepers, we are the parents, the school board can just allow any absurd material to be exposed,” one father said.

“I love when parents communicate with me, a mother one time asked for books for her twin boys to read at a book club with her twin boys and I had moms at back-to-school night excited about the rainbow of books and diverse characters on my shelves,” a teacher said.

Right before the vote, a motion was approved to limit the number of books brought before the board to five cents per calendar month per parent or guardian.

Gov. Henry McMaster has called the proposal a good idea, he said he s giving the state board the oversight of this local authority.

“I don’t know that it’s being exercised by the local boards, from what I’ve seen,” McMaster said. “I think it would be better to have a statewide policy. This would go to the State Board of Education, and I think that’s a good place for it.”

This new policy now goes to the General Assembly for approval.

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