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Uniform Procedure For Selection or Reconsideration of IM

Starting this school year, a new rule is in place across South Carolina that regulates which books are allowed in public schools.

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11K views3 pages

Uniform Procedure For Selection or Reconsideration of IM

Starting this school year, a new rule is in place across South Carolina that regulates which books are allowed in public schools.

Uploaded by

Live 5 News
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

MEMORANDUM

TO: District Superintendents

FROM: John E. Tyler, Esq.


Deputy Superintendent, Legal Affairs

DATE: June 27, 2024

RE: Update on Uniform Procedure for Selection or Reconsideration of Instructional


Materials (Regulation 43-170)

As of June 25, 2024, the State Board of Education’s unanimously passed Uniform Procedure for
Selection or Reconsideration of Instructional Materials (Regulation 43-170) has tolled the
required 120 days under the South Carolina Administrative Procedures Act and will take effect
upon publication in July’s State Register. It will allow for material challenges brought by a
parent or legal guardian of a student within a respective district beginning August 1, 2024.

Historically, the handling of concerns or complaints related to instructional materials other than
those adopted by the State Board of Education (SBE) through the statewide textbook adoption
process (S.C. Code Ann. § 59-31-550) has been governed by a patchwork quilt of local processes
across the 80+ school districts in the state.1

Regulation 43-170 aims to bring uniformity, transparency, and consistency to this process,
ensuring it is pedagogically sound, legally defensible, and logistically feasible. This Regulation
aligns with Supreme Court precedent and state law, focusing on the removal of inappropriate
sexual material, as clearly defined in longstanding state law, from public school classrooms and
libraries. You may read more about the background, key provisions, adoption process, and FAQs
in this brief executive summary.

1 This Regulation in no way alters, diminishes, or supersedes the state’s textbook adoption process (see R. 43-
170(VIII)(B)). Therefore, instructional materials affirmatively adopted by the SBE are not subject to challenge at the
local level and may only be brought to the SBE in its original jurisdiction.
Subject: Update Regulation 43-170 Date: June 27, 2024
Page 2

Understanding that closing out the current school year and ramping up for the coming one is a
labor-intensive undertaking for you and your staff, the SC Department of Education (SCDE)
team is hard at work to provide districts with timely, user-friendly tools and information that will
be available in short order to assist in compliance with the provisions of Regulation 43-170.

This includes the uniform, SCDE-created complaint form, which the Regulation requires districts
to make readily available on their website. We will develop a one-stop-shop on our website as a
home for these resources, and we will stay in regular communication to update you as those
materials come online.

Of note, districts and their elected boards must take the following steps prior to August 1, 2024:

1. Maintain a complete and current list or catalog of all books and other materials
available to students through any of the district’s school libraries or media centers.
We are aware that districts are typically already doing this using a tool such as Destiny
Discover. The Regulation requires that this information be current, regularly updated,
prominently displayed on each district website, and accessible to the public (see R. 43-
170(II)(C)). Going forward, the SCDE will annually inventory the online link for each
district’s portal. For questions or technical assistance regarding this provision, please
contact Mark Herring ([email protected], 803-734-2322).

2. Review and, if necessary, harmonize existing district instructional material review


and challenge policies that the district wishes to maintain.
Upon its effective date, this Regulation preempts, supersedes, and replaces any district,
local, or school policy or practice to the extent that such policy or program is inconsistent
with this Regulation (see R. 43-170(VIII)(A)). If you or your board have specific
questions regarding existing policies, please SCDE’s Office of General Counsel for
technical assistance. You may reach out directly to John Tyler ([email protected], 803-
734-8218).

Additionally, districts should:

1. Identify a designee(s) and/or process to ensure that all new locally-approved


instructional materials comply with the definition of “Age and Developmentally
Appropriate” prior to being made available to students (see R. 43-170(V)). The
Regulation provides that while the district board may delegate this task to staff and may
request a report or recommendation from staff regarding the educational suitability and
compliance of new instructional materials if deemed advisable, the final responsibility for

phone: 803-734-8500 ● fax: 803-734-3389 ● ed.sc.gov


Subject: Update Regulation 43-170 Date: June 27, 2024
Page 3

compliance with this obligation rests with the district board itself (see R. 43-170(III)(E)).

2. Consider to what extent a preemptive review of existing instructional materials is


prudent. While no district or school board is required to review existing instructional
materials preemptively, the Regulation allows for affirmative steps to ensure materials
currently available to students comply with the Regulation, should the district choose to
do so (see R. 43-170(II)(B)).

3. Develop a district-wide uniform process for a parent or legal guardian to review a


complete list of instructional materials in any given class, course, or program, upon
reasonable request (see R. 43-170(II)(C)).

The SCDE and SBE are grateful for the constructive feedback and collaboration from district
partners to-date in revising the Regulation for practicality and precision. Our team is committed
to continuous quality improvement and welcomes questions and ideas to help us create useful
tools, helpful resources, and practical guidance for teachers and administrators as we move
through the implementation process together.

Please contact Robert Cathcart ([email protected], 803-734-2230) with additional questions


or requests for technical assistance.

phone: 803-734-8500 ● fax: 803-734-3389 ● ed.sc.gov

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