| (a) Each Texas public school district board or governing
body must approve and institute a collection development policy that
describes the processes and standards by which a school library acquires,
maintains, and withdraws materials.
(b) A school library collection should include materials
that are age appropriate and suitable to the campus and students it
serves and include a range of materials. A school library collection
should:
(1) Enrich and support the Texas Essential Knowledge
and Skills (TEKS) and curriculum established by Education Code, §28.002
(relating to Required Curriculum), while taking into consideration
students' varied interests, maturity levels, abilities, and learning
styles;
(2) Foster growth in factual knowledge, literary appreciation,
aesthetic values, and societal standards;
(3) Encourage the enjoyment of reading, foster high-level
thinking skills, support personal learning, and encourage discussion
based on rational analysis; and
(4) Represent the ethnic, religious, and cultural groups
of the state and their contribution to Texas, the nation, and the
world.
(c) A school library collection development policy
must:
(1) Describe the purpose and collection development
goals;
(2) Designate the responsibility for collection development;
(3) Establish procedures for the evaluation, selection,
acquisition, reconsideration, and deselection of materials;
(4) Consider the distinct age groups, grade levels,
and possible access to materials by all students within a campus;
(5) Include a process to determine and administer student
access to material rated by library material vendors as "sexually
relevant" as defined by Education Code, §35.001 consistent with
any policies adopted by the Texas Education Agency and local school
board requirements;
(6) Include an access plan that, at a minimum, allows
efficient parental access to the school district's library and online
library catalog; and
(7) Comply with all applicable local, state, and federal
laws and regulations. Specifically, a collection development policy
must:
(A) Recognize that parents are the primary decision
makers regarding their student's access to library material;
(B) Prohibit the possession, acquisition, and purchase
of harmful material, as defined by Penal Code, §43.24, library
material rated sexually explicit material by the selling library material
vendor under Education Code, §35.002, or library material that
is pervasively vulgar or educationally unsuitable as referenced in
Pico v. Board of Education, 457 U.S. 853 (1982);
(C) Recognize that obscene content is not protected
by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution;
(D) Be required for all library materials available
for use or display, including material contained in school libraries,
classroom libraries, and online catalogs;
(E) Ensure schools provide library catalog transparency,
including, but not limited to:
(i) Online catalogs that are publicly available; and
(ii) Information about titles and how and where material
can be accessed;
(F) Recommend schools communicate effectively with
parents regarding collection development, including, but not limited
to:
(i) Access to district/campus policies relating to
school libraries;
(ii) Consistent access to library resources; and
(iii) Opportunities for students, parents, educators,
and community members to provide feedback on library materials and
services; and
(G) Prohibit the removal of material based solely on
the ideas contained in the material or the personal background of
the author of the material or characters in the material.
(d) Evaluation of materials as referenced in this section
includes a consideration of the factors described in subsection (b)
of this section, consideration of local priorities and school district
standards, and at least two of the following:
(1) Consideration of recommendations from parents,
guardians, and local community members;
(2) Consultation with the school district's educators
and library staff and/or consultation with library staff of similarly
situated school districts and their collections and collection development
policies;
(3) An extensive review of the text of item;
(4) The context of a work, including consideration
of the contextual characteristics, overall fit within existing school
library collection, and potential support of the school curriculum;
or
(5) Consideration of authoritative reviews of the items
from sources such as professional journals in library science, recognized
professional education or content journals with book reviews, national
and state award recognition lists, library science field experts,
and highly acclaimed author and literacy expert recommendations.
(e) A reconsideration process as referenced in this
section should ensure that any parent or legal guardian of a student
currently enrolled in the school district or employee of the school
district may request the reconsideration of a specific item in their
school district's library catalog. A reconsideration process should:
(1) Establish a uniform procedure an individual must
follow when filing a request;
(2) Require a school district to include a form to
request a reconsideration of an item on the school's public internet
website if the school has a public internet website or ensure the
form is publicly available at a school district administrative office;
(3) Require that the completed request for reconsideration
form be distributed to the superintendent or superintendent designee,
school librarian, and school district board of trustees or governing
body at the time of submission;
(4) Include a reasonable timeframe, approved by the
school board, for the review and final decision by a committee charged
with the review of the item in its entirety. A district should convene
a review committee in accordance with criteria established by the
district to ensure a thorough and fair process. A reasonable timeframe
should take into account:
(A) The time necessary to convene a committee to meet
and review the item;
(B) Flexibility that may be necessary depending on
the number of pending reconsideration requests; and
(C) Other factors relevant to a fair and consistent
process, including informing the requester on the progress of the
review in a timely fashion;
(5) Establish a uniform process approved by the school
district board of trustees or governing body for the treatment of
any library material undergoing reconsideration;
(6) Include a review and appeal process approved by
the school district board of trustees or governing body; and
(7) Provide that if an item has gone through the reconsideration
process and remains in the collection, a school district may not be
required to reconsider an item within two calendar years of the final
decision.
(f) School districts should ensure a professional librarian
certified by the State Board for Educator Certification or other dedicated
professional library staff trained on proper collection development
standards is responsible for the selection and acquisition of library
materials.
(g) A school district must develop collection assessment
and evaluation procedures to periodically appraise the quality of
library materials in the school library to ensure the library's goals,
objectives, and information needs are serving its school community
and should stipulate the means to weed or update the collection.
(h) A school district's collection development policy
should be reviewed at least every three years and updated as necessary.
(i) School districts may add procedures to these minimum
requirements to satisfy local needs so long as the added procedures
do not conflict with these minimum requirements.
(j) School districts are responsible for ensuring their
school libraries implement and adhere to these collection development
standards.
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