The Conroe ISD Board of Trustees streamlined its book policy to remove material reviews with a hearing officer and allow board members to appeal decisions made by the district’s book reconsideration committee.
The controversial issue was brought back to the board by Trustee Tiffany Nelson during the board’s Oct. 17 meeting for discussion. Nelson suggested the amendments that align with Katy ISD book policy.
According to the previous policy adopted in September 2022, a person could make a complaint to the district and the committee would review the book or material and issue a decision.
If the complainant was unsatisfied, they could appeal that decision to a hearing officer for a Level II hearing.
If the complainant disagreed with that decision by the hearing officer, they could take it to the board of trustees to make a final decision on the book or material.
The new policy removes the hearing officer, who was an outside counsel retained by the district, to review the committee’s decision.
Superintendent Curtis Null said removing the Level II hearings will save the district time and money.
The board approved the policy changes in a 5-2 vote Tuesday, with Trustees Datren Williams and Stacy Chase voting against the changes.
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The updated policy allows for a person to request a review of the book by the reconsideration committee.
If that person is not satisfied with the committee’s ruling, they could then appeal to the board. The policy also allows for a trustee to appeal the decision by the committee.
Williams said the changes don’t add “any value” to the policy.
“It’s a vote of non-confidence in our librarian and administration to safeguard our kids from inappropriate or any materials. I struggle with us adopting any other policy or changes that deviate from that. (It) essentially equates to us continuing to censor books.”
Williams said the changes to the policy allows the board to take the role of a subject matter expert.
“I think we should leave that to the professionals and have some sense of confidence and trust our administration and our librarians,” Williams said. “I think it leads us down a dangerous path.”
The amendments also include adding the definition of “sexually explicit material” to the district policy.
Nelson said the changes would put the district in compliance with House Bill 900, which removes sexually explicit books from school libraries and sets out a rating system for books by booksellers.
HB 900 requires school library booksellers to identify books, including those written for teens, that are “sexually explicit” or “sexually relevant,” and those books rated “sexually explicit” would be banned from schools. The law also requires booksellers to identify such books sold to school districts in the past.
Several Texas booksellers have filed a lawsuit challenging the law, putting it on hold. The lawsuit argues that booksellers will suffer financial damage if they lose school-related business.
Conroe ISD Board President Skeeter Hubert said adding the definition of sexually explicit wouldn’t change how the district addresses that issue since it is addressed by the Texas Education Code that the district already adheres to.
“It doesn’t strengthen or weaken (the policy),” Hubert said.
Trustee Misty Odenweller said the changes make sense and allows the board to follow state guidelines.
“We are elected to be the ultimate authority (for our district),” Odenweller said.
Following the discussion on the policy, the board unanimously agreed to remove the graphic novel Drama by Raina Telgemeier from intermediate and junior high libraries making it only available for high school students.
The book centers on Callie, a middle school student and theater-lover who works in her school’s drama production crew. The book does discuss the homosexuality of twin 8th grade boys, both of which come out to Callie, who ultimately accepts them as they are.
According to the district’s website, the district has reviewed 15 books with “Black Boy Joy” by Kwame Mbalia the only one pending review. The book includes stories about the joys of Black boyhood, with stories from 17 bestselling Black authors.
