Selection Policy

[Susan Midelton <smiddelton@KIWI.DEP.ANL.GOV>]

Dear Group:  As my superintendent said tonight,"It has been a killer of a week."
My district was faced with an emotional, highly publicized book challenge
against War Comes to Willie Freeman which was being taught in a fifth grade
classroom.  Please notice the past tense.  As a result of this turmoil, I
have been asked to chair a committee of educators and citizens to evaluate
our educational materials selection policy.  The current policy, with a
Citizen's Complaint Form adopted from the National Council of Teacher's of
English, has been in place since 1978 with no revisions.  I need information
on how to create this committee, such as:  number of members, with 5 schools
involved (K-8, one junior high); factions of society to be represented;
roles of the committee members; etc.  Also, if you have dealt with a book
challenge, either in the classroom or the library, I would appreciate
hearing how your district handled the situation.
To all those who responded to my question concerning the Collier brothers,
my staff and I greatly appreciate your rapid responses.

Really looking forward to the weekend...
Susan Midelton
smiddelton@kiwi.dep.anl.gov