I was recently sent a newspaper article that appeared in a local paper, Bay to Bay on March 3, 2024. While I was not interviewed for this article I do want to thank the author of the article, Liz Holland, for bringing up a brief description of what the Wicomico School Board will be addressing at its monthly meeting on March 12, 2024 at 7PM at 101 Long Avenue. Since all Board members were named individually in the article I will use those names so as not to create any confusion.
The article consists of a number of problems within the Board, in creating a policy for screening inappropriate reading materials in the Media Centers. Myself, being a proactive person, suggested that Media materials should be screened before being put into our Media centers. What we do now is let the media specialist and teachers select the material that goes into the Media centers and then it is approved by the administrator in charge. Now my suggestion was to screen this material before it was sent forward. We did not get a chance for any discussion on how to do this because some Board members automatically assumed that this was too big a job for the Board to accomplish. So that suggestion was simply thrown out. So here we are again being reactive to a known problem instead of solving the situation before it becomes a big problem. I think all Board members were really surprised when they learned that 9,000 books had been ordered as of the date of the last Board meeting. What will that number be when the end of the school year comes? Do the math with 24 schools and let me know how many new books are ordered so far for each school.
There is another area that I have serious concerns about. Four Board members: Gene Malone, Allen Brown, David Plotts and Bonnie Ennis, stated that they would allow only parents and guardians to file to have a book reviewed because they expect an “Onslaught of Non-Stakeholders to flood the school system requesting books to be removed. Myself, Susan Beachum and Kristien Hazel feel that ” Community Members” should be added to file for a review. Why? When the Board was holding interviews for a new superintendent, one of the line items for the prospective hire was to meet with “Community Members”. When the Superintendent has Open Door night it is to meet with anyone including “Community Members”. 24 Faith Based Partnerships which are made up of “Community Members” provide a tremendous amount of support for our school system. When the Superintendent puts out the Annual Budget Report, it is to get feedback from anyone in the “Community”. I would like to have one of these four members explain to the taxpayers why they can pay their tax dollars to the schools but have no say can’t have a say as to how their tax dollars are spent. And isn’t it amazing that in the Supreme Court’s litmus test for obscenity, two of the three bullet points are a direct input from the community. So taxpayers, community members are you relevant or should the school system just tell you to give them your tax dollars and don’t worry how it’s spent.
I do have a question for those of you who believe that this obscene material in our Media centers should be allowed. Is obscene material protected by the First Amendment?
Please feel free to comment on this article. Don’t be afraid to put a signature to your comment. While I might not agree with what some people have said about this subject in the Comment section of the Board meetings I do respect them for getting up and giving their ideas on the subject. I think by putting all our ideas together we can come up with an agreeable policy.
Please feel free to sign up on our website to speak up in the Public Comment section of the School Board meetings. If you don’t have a computer or can’t connect, call 410-677-5998 and ask if they can sign you up. I look forward to hearing from you.
John Palmer, WCBOE
Firstly, whatever their content may be, unless LEGALLY “obscene” then books cannot be legally banned. Your efforts to ban them should focus on the necessary judicial determination, not simply trying to enforce your personal and subjective morality on public schools.
Secondly, no matter how objectionable you may feel the content of some book is, parents are fully capable of and RESPONSIBLE for discussing any and all subjects with their children. Some parents may support their kids learning about something they are exposed to and they should be free to have those discussions, while you should be free to discuss with your own kids why the material depicts something you believe is wrong. Even the Bible contains some horrible depictions of horrible things, but you don’t ban the Bible. You discuss it with your family and community.
Thirdly, if you aren’t a parent of a child in the school, just let the parents address it. You can and should be free to discuss it with all concerned, but you have no standing to directly affect what the parents and their children encounter in the school — unless it is a crime. And that final point takes us back to the first. If you care so much, you should pursue legal remedies, not political.
Mr. Palmer,
Don’t you know that you are supposed to play nice in the sandbox? I mean, who would ever think that materials should be screened BEFORE being approved? That is just OUTRAGEOUS, not to mention the fact that community members should be included in all phases of government (including schools funded by taxpayers). I mean, Mr. Brown and Mrs. Ennis will think you have gone completely, stark raving, mad!
Signed,
An old fart with an opinion
Good Morning John,
Thank you for your thoughts and comments. Here are mine as requested:
What we have here is some of the board, perhaps the superintendent?, in collusion with some in the schools, once again, making up their own set(s) of rules. If the shoe fits…
Members of the communities in which we live are stakeholders.
Taxpayers are stakeholders.
Members of We the People are stakeholders.
Our future, my future, depends on the future paths of the children in our schools. I do not want to live in Sodom or Gomorrah.
Before the Boy Scouts of America became woke and ruined, I volunteered. One of the tenets taught to leaders was age appropriate activity. For this exact, same reason, certain books and materials should be reserved for when a child reaches the age of majority. They will be more mature and able to process what they are reading and seeing. They will have developed judgement.
They will be capable of making their own decisions as opposed to having things forced on them. This is not to say that these materials should not be protected by the First Amendment, but that children should be protected from these materials and the World. Their time will come when each of them will be thrust out into it.
The liberal thinkers will say “It takes a village to raise a child”, but only when it suits their needs. They also want to choose which members of that village to include and which to exclude. I agree with them. Let me explain .
We raised two very accomplished children, WITH the influence of their teachers, their coaches, their Scout leaders, their friends, their friends’ parents, their grandparents and so on. We, as their parents, chose with whom we would allow our children to associate. As you know us, you know that our input was constant, consistent, and, if need be, fierce.
No one has more right to a child’s upbringing than their responsible parents. Parents, get involved!
The liberal thinkers want to assume the role of in loco parentis in order to decide for the true parents, whom shall be the children’s influencers. Socialist doctrine emphasizes this exact methodology and much more. All of us are stakeholders and we must ask ourselves, in what kind of country and community do I want to live in five, ten, 20, or 50 years?
This is just one of many calls to action. Legal action is another.
Involvement effects change!
I digress.
I am still not past WCBOE’s abridgment of free speech protections under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. School policy is not law.
Another “policy” in direct conflict with our God given rights.
They will abridge my rights at a school board meeting, yet defend that same right by putting a book in the library. Hypocrisy.
“So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.“
I0:1,1 Firstly I have no kids in the public education system, but I do care about the contents of what someone elses kids are taught, to make this a safe and civil society for future generations.
Secondly, in public schools, the kids should be taught reading, writing, arithmetic, and history. The rest should be taught at home before going to higher education if desired.
Thirdly, bring back the belt and school Principles with size and ability to use the belt effectively.
10:10 – have you been inside any of the schools? Have you seen the students? Many children have no “ home learning”, nor will they ever receive any. The “bring back the belt” idea (corporal punishment) would be nothing more than a lawsuit just waiting to happen, along with possible jail time. Essentially there is a feral student issue that there is no solution for.
Related question: WCBOE has chosen to join a lawsuit against a variety of social media firms, in hopes of sharing in the proceeds of a potential settlement. Tik-Tok is among the firms being sued for the claimed damage they do to the youth, and the burden this places on the school system.
Why then does at least one of the high schools solicit material from students and staff for a variety of theme events that are then edited and posted on school email with a tik-tok link. The school email will not open the link because it’s blocked but students and staff are encouraged to copy the link and head to tik-tok.
Tik-tok lawyers won’t have to work very hard to disprove WCBOE’s claims.
Worth inquiring into?
To 10:11. Then you do agree that there are “horrible depictions of horrible things” in these books. You compared them. Lol. Why are libs so obsessed with minors and sexuality?
Mr. Palmer,
Thanks for speaking out. It appears there are several closely related topics at play here.
1) How do books or other media get into the schools? Someone or some group chooses what to purchase and what to decline. What criteria do they use; personal preference? WCBOE criteria? Touts by publishers? Some list from a librarians’ group in Annapolis or DC? It’s the foundational question since this issue is generated by what WCBOE has chosen to buy, stock and distribute without scrutiny or community input.
It’s germane for all Wicomico citizens to be interested and for both WCBOE administration and BOE to have a ready answer that is honest and accurate.
2) Then comes the question of how to treat material already purchased and available for student eyes that students, parents, other adults or Child Protective Services might have objections to? Reviewing and/or removing material found to be objectionable should not be that big a deal. Give it away to a parent who wants their kids exposed to that content.
There is a major difference between removing something found objectionable, in whole or in part, and the loaded word ‘banning’. The book is still available for purchase and in print or online for those interested; it’s just no longer in the WCBOE inventory and those desiring it will need to make a personal purchase. The school libraries routinely remove numerous books, without objection, for a variety of reasons unrelated to objectionable content. Librarians make those culls, with or without supervisory direction, so they can spend next year’s budget on new material.
3) Authors can pen wholesome or objectionable material on their own or at the behest of publishers. They can self-publish or find a publisher. No problem. But the existence of a book or other media does not create an obligation for WCBOE or anyone else to buy, rent or distribute the material. Kids have phones and computers at home if they are keen on material not in the school library; parents can control the settings if they choose. Schools shouldn’t be doing an end around to subvert parental choices.
Mr. Palmer, continue to ask meaningful questions about this topic and others large and small that impact what we provide to students.
Thanks Mr. Palmer! You have been doing a great job fighting the good fight for years…I know you must get tired. We appreciate you Mr. Palmer. Thanks for standing up for what is right!