Kern Board of Education approves policy on appropriate books in classrooms, parents can now file complaints

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) – The Kern County Board of Education voted Tuesday night to adopt a policy that helps determine the appropriateness of books in schools.

For months now, the policy had sparked frustrations and even verbal attacks on board members out of concerns it would mean a ban on books.

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The policy passed unanimously – with one trustee absent – on its third reading. The proposed – and now passed – policy is taken directly from the California School Boards Association.

Simply put, the policy states that supplementary instructional materials, like books, must be inclusive, diverse and educational but also appropriate.

But the Kern Board of Education will be adding a line at the end saying “a parent or guardian may bring a complaint using these procedures.”

This complaint form, as well as the policy, will soon be on the Board website, board members said.

As anticipated May’s monthly meeting drew a big turnout from both supporters and opponents of the policy. Many of them spoke during the public comment session, which was limited to 90 seconds instead of the typical two minutes, due to a high volume of speakers.

“Education, not sexualization. Education, not sexualization. Education, not sexualization,” said Pastor Angelo Frazier, as supporters of the policy chanted along.

A local teacher, on the other hand, countered, “Do not rush into extreme policies that can pave the way for future book bans.”

The policy was first proposed by board members Lori Cisneros and Mary Little back in March and quickly led to months-long tension.

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The root of it all was a lack of clarity on whether the policy was the equivalent of a book ban.

High school student Carter Beardsley, a local high school student and fierce opponent of book bans, told 17 News that was his initial understanding.

“[I] had the perception that this was a book banning policy when in fact this is a policy that would formally be writing down a process that the Kern County Board of Education already has.”

Area 7 Trustee Cisneros further explained her goal to 17 News ahead of the board meeting.

“[The policy allows for] a way for parents and teachers and staff to remove a book from a classroom or a library if they deem it inappropriate,” Cisneros said. “ It’s not against the LGBTQ community or the minority community. This is about children. And this is about children being exposed to sexually explicit material.”

One such sexually violent book, as Cisneros pointed out,  is “Smoke” by Ellen Hopkins.

She said it’s “indecent” and “offensive” literature.

For years now, book bans have sparked debates nationwide. But in California since September 2023, book bans have been banned.

And keep in mind, Kern’s 46 school districts have their own boards and make their own decisions.

According to the Superintendent of Schools, the Kern Board of Education only oversees some 500 students from Kern’s six K-12 community schools. These schools, as KCSOS explained, “educate students who have been unsuccessful in their school of residence. Student may have been expelled or referred to our program for a number of reasons.”

Furthering her point that the policy is not a ban, Cisneros said if someone at a school complains about a book, the book is only removed from that school.

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“”It’s worth it for one book, to remove the one book,” Cisneros said of her efforts.

She added, “This is removing one book from a classroom or a library that a parent finds is inappropriate, doesn’t want their child to be exposed to. It’s different than a ban, we are not removing the books across the state in public libraries…”

One of her supporters noted it’s all about parental rights.

“If these books are on school shelves and the parents don’t like what these books are saying, they should have the right to have them removed from the schools,” said Lori Eskew, a Kern County resident. “These books teach children things that at their grade levels shouldn’t know what to do.”

Eskew also stated she’s against sexually explicit topics, as well as sexuality-related topics, such as homosexuality. Those materials do not belong in classrooms, she said.

“A lot of it is sexual content that is not how to have a baby,” Eskew said. “It’s causing separation… We should not teach [children] to hate. There’s nothing wrong with different cultures. But don’t teach the separation of culture.”

“Until you’re 18 years old, you have no rights but your parents’ rights,” Eskew emphasized repeatedly.

The meeting also featured speakers, one from the Kern Pride Chamber who discussed the needs for a safe, nurturing economic space for Kern’s LGBTQ+ community. The others were supporters of the policy, who broke down.

“Anytime that we are restricting information, it’s never a good thing, said Michael Pollack, a Kern County resident against book bans.

During public comment, Pollack stated, amid whispers and scoffs from certain members of the crowd, that he raised three successful children. A tactic he did not use was banning books.

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“I feel like we should’ve done this a long time ago and avoided the headache, because I felt like the anger over the last several months has been for nothing because it turned out everyone felt like they were a winner tonight.”

High school student Beardsley pointed out while the policy itself is not controversial, it had become so polarized. The public comment session showed just that.

And for some, a policy that posed the risk of a book ban was a reminder of the parental notification policy proposed last year by the same two board members: Lori Cisneros and Mary Little.

Remember, that policy received great backlash by some, as it would’ve mandated schools tell parents should their kids undergo any changes to their gender, gender identity or gender expression, like switching pronouns.

And folks ended the night with greater confidence, this won’t be a ban on books.

“Reminding people that the intention of this should not and should remain to not be a book banning policy,” Beardsley said on how he hopes the Board continues to pursue the policy.

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