Somerset Board of Education Responds to State Superintendent’s Stay of New Media Policy

SOMERSET COUNTY, Md. – The Somerset County Board of Education (BOE) is responding after the Maryland State Superintendent issued a 60-day enforcement stay on their controversial new media policy passed earlier this week.

Policy 500-19 restricts access to Young Adult (YA) books in schools for students under the age of 18, and brings new disciplinary standards for school employees found in violation of the policy. BOE leaders justified the decision, arguing the YA genre is intended for ages 18 to 23, and said the policy was being instituted in an effort to restrict adult material in Somerset schools. Under the new policy, no books may be added or removed from school libraries without a majority vote of the BOE.

However, many have criticized the policy, saying the provisions restricting content are too broad, and that the policy is illegal under Maryland’s Freedom to Read Act. The Act, passed in Apr. 2024, requires local school systems to operate their school library media programs consistent with certain State standards and prohibits retaliation against library personnel who seek to comply with those same standards. The Board maintains they are in compliance with the Act, saying no books have been removed because of an author’s race, nationality, gender, or place of origin.

Concerns surrounding the legality of the policy has prompted State leaders to respond. State Superintendent Dr. Carey M. Wright has decided to temporarily stay enforcement of Policy 500-19 for 60 days, allowing additional time for a thorough review of the policy and the facts surrounding its adoption and implementation. But the Somerset BOE remains confident amid the increased scrutiny.

“The Board welcomes the State Superintendent’s review and believes the 60-day period provides an opportunity to distinguish the actual language and implementation of Policy 500-19 from inaccurate characterizations circulating publicly,” the BOE said in a statement. “To be clear: Somerset County Public Schools has not banned Harry Potter or any educationally suitable literature, and the Board has not directed school libraries to remove books based upon an author’s identity or protected characteristics.”

Concerns also surround the BOE’s meeting from Jun. 24, in which the Board authorized the purchase of more than 1,071 new library books selected by the school system’s Media Library Specialists and Supervisors. Many have publicly accused the Board of using this action to begin removing existing literature, a claim the Board denies.