Calvert County Public Schools is recruiting community members and parents to serve on Library Reconsideration Committees, the panels responsible for reviewing books that have been formally challenged for removal from school libraries.
Separate committees will be formed for elementary, middle, and high schools, according to a release from CCPS. Each will include administrators, teachers, librarians, students, parents, and community members, and will convene only as needed — when a formal challenge is filed. Members are asked to read the book or books under review, attend a training and orientation session, and participate in all scheduled meetings, which may fall during the day or evening depending on the group’s needs. Anyone selected will serve a one-year term, and CCPS says all review materials will be provided at least 30 days before a book comes up for discussion.
At least one parent or guardian and one community member will be randomly selected to serve on each committee; if additional members are needed later in the year, they’ll be drawn from the same original applicant pool. Selected members will be notified by Sept. 20.
Calvert County residents and parents interested in serving can apply through an online form, linked in the district’s release, by Aug. 31.
This structure isn’t new. It traces back to a framework first proposed in 2023 by then-first-year school board member Jana Smith-Post, who at the time went by Jana Post. The proposal drew pushback from some educators and community members, who raised concerns about weighing the judgment of trained, licensed librarians against that of community volunteers. Smith-Post is now president of the Calvert County Board of Education.
The announcement comes under the district’s first full year led by Superintendent Dr. Marcus J. Newsome, who was confirmed to the permanent role by a unanimous board vote in February after serving as interim superintendent since August 2025. CCPS serves roughly 15,000 students across 12 elementary schools, six middle schools, four high schools, the Career & Technology Academy, and Calvert Country School — part of a district recognized for 100% Maryland Green Schools certification, 87% Purple Star Schools status, and four consecutive years of Best Communities for Music Education recognition.
Questions about the committees can be directed to Thomas Hill, CCPS’s supervisor of instructional technology and teacher induction, at 443-550-8092 or hillt@calvertnet.k12.md.us.
