FORT WORTH, Texas — The Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD) has closed all of its district libraries to take inventory of all books on shelves, according to a district spokesperson.
The district told WFAA "every campus library will be closed through August 25 so catalogs can be inventoried.” While 128 libraries are closed, a separate process is underway: more than 100 titles will be transferred from campus libraries for further review.
A spokesperson indicated officials are reviewing material in a way they haven't before to comply with a new state law taking effect Sept. 1.
The House Bill 900 by Frisco Republican Rep. Jared Patterson – known as the READER Act – was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott. It aims to keep sexually explicit content away from children across nearly 9,000 Texas K-12 campuses.
Under the new law, “sexually explicit” books will be taken off shelves, and “sexually relevant” books will go through a first-of-its-kind ratings system before they're made available to students and will require parental consent.
In an interview with WFAA, FWISD Interim Library Director Dr. Ross Teller said district leaders hope to complete the review of roughly 100 books "as soon as we can."
The books under question have already been removed from shelves, according to a district spokesperson.
"We are committed to having a safe and welcoming space for all students in our libraries," Teller said. "We're just concentrating on ensuring we have the most welcoming inviting and appropriate collection available.
The Texas Library Association (TLA) has voiced concern over the READER Act. Shirley Robinson, executive director of the TLA, said the law will cause some “chaos and confusion” for librarians across the state.
“It’s going to take some time for everyone to figure out how this is going to work,” Robinson said earlier this summer. “There are going to be discrepancies in how its administered without very clear guidelines.”
For more information on the READER Act, click here.
Students are still able to enter the district's libraries for study purposes during the temporary closure, but checking out books is unavailable. Some parents said their children don't spend significant time in the library during the first weeks of school.
"I asked my daughter yesterday, 'Did you know the libraries were closed?'" said Amy Ramsey, who has two children in Fort Worth schools. "She had no idea. They had no idea."
But, librarians expressed concern the closure could delay some assignments, particularly in English classes. Mary Woodard, immediate past president of the TLA, said the state requires students to select a book to read on their own near the beginning of the year.
"It's really important that kids are able to get into the library to get those materials as soon as school starts," Woodard said.
Objecting to the new law, Woodard noted that librarians are "constantly looking at the materials we have."
Fort Worth ISD's action also comes after a July 25 board meeting where concerned citizens raised questions about the content of books on the shelves in district libraries. More than a dozen people spoke on the matter at the meeting.
Since then, the district has removed three books from library shelves: "Gender Queer", "Flamer", and "Wait What?"
"People are reading excerpts - like, maybe a couple of sentences from a 600-page book - and declaring that book to be smut or pornography," said Ramsey, who also works with Defense of Democracy. "What we're seeing across the country now is particular books being singled out - more often than not, with LGBTQ themes."
Ramsey noted parents can submit requests to remove any book for their child. There is also a formal process to request book removals for the entire student population, which is also digitally available to parents.
"They can exercise their parental rights and do that," Ramsey added.
The district also confirmed to WFAA that Victor Chapa, who was the director of library services, stepped down from the position. In a statement to WFAA, Chapa called the library director position a consuming role he stepped away from in pursuit of better work-life balance following a death in the family. Chapa is still employed with the district as a World Geography teacher.
"Libraries have historically been a place for kids to find refuge and for the free exchange of ideas, and I believe that’s how they should remain... but we’re also a public school district, and we will be in compliance with all state laws," Teller said.
The school year for Fort Worth ISD began on Monday, Aug. 14.
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