WilCo Approves CARES Funds For RRISD, LISD After Book Dispute

Round Rock TX

22 December, 2021

11:32 AM

Description

ROUND ROCK, TX — After a week-long dispute over certain school books, Williamson County has approved millions of federal funds for Round Rock and Leander ISD on Tuesday. The commissioners court unanimously approved to provide more than $8 million in CARES Act funding to the school districts to help pay for pandemic-related expenses. While LISD is set to receive $3,738,000 in CARES Act funding from Williamson County, they must follow two conditions: First, the funding "must be used for reimbursement of the eligible line items provided to the County Treasurer with no substitutions." Second, "The District follow their approved process and that District staff report to the LISD Board of trustees at a Board meeting and make [the report] available on the District website no later than April 30, 2022 the full and complete results of the EF Local review process (or whatever the right name is for removal from all digital and main campus libraries) of the 11 books that were removed through the District approved CCAC process." The 11 books, cited in the second motion, were removed from the district's optional reading lists and classroom libraries within LISD on Dec. 9, but are still available on campus and in its digital libraries. RELATED: Leander ISD Removes 11 Books, Graphic Novels From Curriculum The 11 books that were removed on the high school optional reading list included: Alan Moore's "V is for Vendetta"Margaret Atwood and Renee Nault's "The Handmaid's Tale: The Graphic Novel" Ashley Hope Perez' "Out of Darkness" Shaun David Hutchinson's "Brave Face: A Memoir" Carmen Maria Machado's "In the Dream House: A Memoir" I.W. Gregorio's "None of the Above" Amy Lynn Reed's "The Nowhere Girls"Jacqueline Woodson's "Red at the Bone"Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" The Authorized Graphic Adaptation by Myles HymanLaurie Halse Anderson's "Shout" Brian K. Vaughan's "Y: The Last Man Book One" The 11 books and graphic novels were removed from LISD's optional book club curriculum after a year-long review over "appropriateness" and "content level" in school books. The issue over these books "appropriateness" began last year as parents began protesting some of the books on the list, arguing they contained depictions of graphic violence, inappropriate language and sexual content. Perez' book was under scrutiny earlier this year in Lake Travis ISD after a parent went on a tirade during a school board meeting in September citing the book described anal sex. Perez said anyone who files a complaint over her work should read the book cover to cover. "Out of Darkness" chronicles a love affair between an African American boy and a Mexican American girl against the backdrop of a horrific 1937 explosion in East Texas, which killed nearly 300 schoolchildren and teachers. Connie Odom, a spokesperson for Williamson County, told Patch in an email Wednesday that in the meeting, Judge Gravell explains that Leander ISD has one process for removing books from classroom libraries and a separate process for removing them from school libraries. Odom said parents thought that removing books from classrooms also removed them from the school library, which was not the case. "The Commissioners Court asks that they put the books removed from classrooms through the process for removal from school libraries. They are not dictating what should happen, just that they conduct their process and report to their school board by April 30, 2022," Odom said. In the meeting, County Commissioner Cynthia Long said she wants the district review the books to determine if removal from physical and digital libraries in LISD would also be appropriate. The motion to remove the books from the school libraries entirely may be an issue as it could violate the student's first amendment rights to academic freedom. KVUE reports Superintendent Bruce Gearing told Long in an email exchange that if she wishes to challenge the books removal, she must file a formal complaint regarding any or all of the 11 books. To do that, she must fill out the Request for Reconsideration Form, which asks detailed questions like if people have read the books cover to cover before their request to be removed. It's not clear if Long or any other commissioners have filled out this form as the district is on winter break and will not return to regular operations until Jan. 3. In the meantime, the district has released this statement on the county approving the funds: "The $3.7 million for Leander ISD would allow our district to reallocate and have additional resources to support student learning as we continue to navigate the pandemic. The federal legislation was intended to support communities during the global health crisis, which is how we would use the funding for the benefit of children. "We have spent 16 months working with our community and Board to refine a process and policy for reviewing instructional materials. The last 16 months have taught us that decisions regarding instructional resources and children are not uniform for all families. This is why we have rallied around the choice and voice of our community and families. We will continue to do so, aligning with the vision, local control, and governance of our independently elected Board of Trustees. The district is closed until January 3, 2022. We will look for the messaging from the court and consider our options at that time." For Round Rock ISD, the county is set to grant about $4,950,625 in CARES Act funding on the condition the district follows its own policies regarding timeliness reviewing books if a complaint is made against reading material available to students. According to RRISD's website, the instructional material review process could take up to 30 days at most, pending appeals by the person who filed the complaint. Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, Round Rock ISD's Chief of Public Affairs and Communications, told Patch in an email last week all parents and members of the public in Round Rock ISD have complete access to the entirety of its school library catalogue. Parents always have the right to determine what books their students are able to access, she said. "Any parent who has a concern with a particular book that is available on their campus is encouraged to contact their campus staff directly, and if the campus staff is unable to address their concerns, the parent may file a formal objection," LaCoste-Caputo said. She said if, after review by a reconsideration committee, the parent is unsatisfied with the conclusion, the parent may continue through the formal complaint process which includes an opportunity for complainants to receive a Board of Trustees decision regarding the complaint. The issue over the county withholding federal funds from the two Central Texas school districts has become a hot topic in the area and even got the attention of some Texas House of Representatives. On Monday, District 50 representative Celia Israel, District 47 representative Vickki Goodwin, District 48 representative Donna Howard and District 136 representative John H. Bucy III sent a letter to the county urging them to reconsider withholding CARES Act funds from RRISD and LISD. RELATED: TX Reps Urge WilCo To Not Withhold Federal Funds For RRISD, LISD "As representatives of these communities, their taxpayers, and their children, we find it unconscionable that our public schools, teachers, and students would be punished through no fault of their own but because of political disputes," the letter said. The stipulations the two districts must meet will have to be discussed and reviewed in January once the county, LISD, RRISD return to full operations.