Vermont School Districts require Materials Selection Policy.

• Windows, Mirrors and Sliding Glass Doors…

“Children from dominant social groups have always found their mirrors in books, but they, too, have suffered from the lack of availability of books about others. They need books as windows onto reality, not just on imaginary worlds. They need books that will help them understand the multicultural nature of the world they live in and their place as a member of just one group, and their connections to all other humans.” -Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop, 1990

Every Vermont School District is required to have a Library Materials Selection and Reconsideration policy and procedures. The policy and procedures are required to be guided by Act 150. 

VERMONT ACT 150 (2024) (see pages 7-9 for school libraries) Effective July 1, 2025

"Each school board and each approved independent school shall develop, adopt, ensure the enforcement of, and make available in the manner described under subdivision 563(1) of this title a library material selection policy and procedures for the reconsideration and retention of materials. The policy and procedures shall affirm the importance of intellectual freedom and be guided by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Vermont laws prohibiting discrimination in places of public accommodation, the American Library Association’s Freedom to Read Statement, Vermont’s Freedom to Read Statement, and reflect Vermont’s diverse people and history, including diversity of race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, religion, and political beliefs."

MODEL SELECTION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS POLICY Code D8 (required)

ACT 150 HISTORY 

slideshow from 2024 VT Fest

slideshow from 2021 Dynamic Landscapes

INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM DOCUMENTS

• ALA Library Bill of Rights and An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights for a School Library Program 

• ALA Freedom to Read

• ALA Intellectual Freedom Blog  / Intellectual Freedom News

• ALA Selection & Reconsideration Policy Toolkit

• VSLA Statement on intellectual freedom (2022)

• Vermont Freedom to Read Statement (2024)

• FIrst Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

• The National Council of Teachers of English position statement The Students’ Right to Read

• PEN