NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Libraries in public schools could soon face more scrutiny across Tennessee, as a bill requiring school boards to review materials accessible by students heads to Governor Bill Lee's desk.
Lawmakers called the bill the "Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022." It requires school boards to develop ways for students, parents and employees to comment on materials in the library. It also requires school boards to develop a procedure to create a library collection at each school "that is appropriate for the age and maturity levels of the students."
School boards will also need to review the collections of school libraries, determining whether each item they get comments on is appropriate for students. If they decide it is inappropriate, then they will remove it from the library.
The bill does not define what is considered appropriate for students in different grades. By requiring school boards to review each item, the bill essentially leaves that power in the hands of elected representatives.
In October 2021, state lawmakers also passed a bill allowing school board members to run based on their political affiliation. So, the resources available in school libraries could be determined by the partisan leanings of county school boards, if Governor Lee signs the bill.
The Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 specifies that it does not include materials made available to students as part of a course curriculum. It only affects materials students can check out from a library.
The bill was also proposed after the McMinn County Board of Education chose to remove Maus, a Pulitzer-winning graphic novel about the Holocaust, from students' curricula. The decision sparked international outrage and parents filled the following meeting to voice their concern.
However, the board stood by their unanimous decision and kept the book off the curriculum, saying it included nudity and language that was inappropriate for children.
The author of the book, Art Spiegelman, later said he was astonished that the nudity in the book of his dead mother who had died due to suicide could be considered suggestive.