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We sincerely appreciate your willingness to help the Washington County School District identify material in our Media Center Libraries that is inappropriate for the school setting. By policy, Washington County School District firmly declares that all school library material should be appropriately selected according to Federal and State Laws.
Please understand that Librarians and other administrators are incredibly busy individuals, and we want to be as responsive as possible to your concerns.
To that end, we ask that you are first and foremost aware of what material may be immediately removed from the library following an informal complaint and what material would require a formal challenge by an individual, with Standing, under Washington County School District Policy 4211.
The district is subject to the first amendment in the US Constitution and numerous laws regarding the removal of material within libraries.
Material that may be removed without a formal challenge must be identified as material containing a “Description or depiction of illicit sex or sexual immorality” that by law “has no serious value for minors.” Material not meeting these criteria must be evaluated by a formal review committee, with parents representing the community, that determines if the material is classified as “Sensitive” per Utah State Law.
A description or depiction of illicit sex or sexual immorality as defined in Subsection (1)(a)(i), (ii), or (iii) has no serious value for minors.
UCA §76-10-1227 (1)(a)(i), (ii), and (iii) state:
(1) For purposes of this section and Section 76-10-1228:
“Description or depiction of illicit sex or sexual immorality” means:
(i) human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal;
(ii) acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse, or sodomy;
(iii) fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals or pubic region;
This does not include UCA §76-10-1227 (1)(a)(iv) which states:
(iv) fondling or other erotic touching of the human buttock or female breast.
As explained, any other material not meeting this specific criterion must be evaluated by the District Review Committee to determine if the material is classified as Sensitive per State Law. If the District Review Committee determines that the material is classified as Sensitive, then the material will be removed. Only formal challenges by a person with Standing (as defined in WCSD Policy 4211) may begin this process by following WCSD Policy 4211.
If you believe that the material you reported falls under the first category, it contains a “Description or depiction of illicit sex or sexual immorality” that by law “has no serious value for minors.”. We ask you to do the following.
Please send an email to the librarian who maintains that material with the following information:
- Title
- Author
- Quote Verbatim the specific passage that contains a “Description or depiction of illicit sex or sexual immorality” that by law “has no serious value for minors.”
- Identify which of the three criteria you believe applies to this paragraph.
- Identify where in the material the passage can be found (specifically, the page and edition so that it can be verified)
If the librarian agrees with your assessment of the material, the material in question will immediately be held in all District Media Center Libraries. The librarian will then forward the information to District Administration. If District Administration finds that it does meet the criteria, the material will be removed from all District Media Center Libraries.
We will, however, complete the entire review process, including reading or reviewing the material as a whole for any formal challenge in adherence to Policy 4211.
If the material does not meet the specific criteria for removal without a formal challenge, we invite any individual with Standing to submit a formal challenge using form 944.
Thank you for your understanding regarding this matter, and we look forward to working with you to protect the students of Washington County School District from Sensitive Materials.
Washington County School District Administration.
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