Ocean City School District board hears public concerns about proposed library materials policy

At the Ocean City School District board meeting on Feb. 24, several members of the public urged the board to publish and clarify a proposed library materials policy implementing the state's Freedom to Read Act, saying parents need advance notice and clearer complaint processes.

Ethel Hermano, who identified herself as a Galloway School Board member speaking as a parent and grandparent, told the board she had earlier asked why the district had not posted the policy and said parents could not review it on the district website. "If I can't read the policy, then the parents can't read the policy," she said, urging the board to make the document available so families can comment.

Another commenter, Liz Nicoleti of Ocean City, reiterated that parents should be notified when the policy is implemented and pressed the board to explain parents' rights under the model the district is using. She said some nearby districts have not adopted a similar policy and urged the Ocean City board to reconsider aspects she finds problematic, especially around notification when students use certain facilities.

Members of the policy committee told the public the policy was on the meeting agenda for a second reading and that the district posts policy manual entries after a second reading. A committee representative said the model policy is read on the agenda but is not placed in the official policy manual/website until the second reading is complete.

During public comment, Ethel Hermano also referred to a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision and said parents could expect opt-out forms and legal support for challenges; she named advocacy organizations she said would assist parents. The board did not make any immediate legal determinations during public comment, and the article does not take a position on the legal claims; those claims were the speaker's characterization of recent court activity.

Board members and administrators repeatedly emphasized that personnel, student privacy, and litigation-related issues are handled outside public comment and that the board would not discuss those matters in open session. The committee indicated it expects further guidance on implementation issues for the policy and for related "bell-to-bell" phone rules from the state commissioner in the coming weeks.

The board did not adopt the policy during this meeting; the discussion continued as part of the policy committee's second reading on the agenda. The district said that once a policy is formally adopted after the required readings, the posted policy manual entry will be updated on the district website.