Which Parents Get “Parental Rights?” In This Ohio School, It’s Those Who Hate LGBTQ+ People

In April, Ohio’s Bellbrook-Sugarcreek School District (BSSD) implemented a new policy that directly impacts the books students across the district have access to. Policy #5780 is a “parental bill of rights” that prohibits so-called “sexual content” and “gender ideology” for students in kindergarten through eighth grade, but requires explicit parental permission for such content for high school students.¹ This “sexual content” applies not only to access to books in both classrooms and school libraries, but also to the curriculum.

BSSD’s Board of Directors drafted and passed the policy last spring in response to Ohio House Bill 8 (HB 8), dubbed the “Parental Bill of Rights.” But BSSD’s policy goes far beyond what is required by HB 8. BSSD policy means that parents must select their high school students for additions to the school library and classroom library collections. in For curricula that may contain “sexual content.” High school students must also choose in Accessing books labeled with “sexual content” or “gender ideology” in libraries.

Parents who do not take steps to opt their students in will not have their students’ access to the library restricted, but will be given “alternative instruction of equivalent academic ability” if necessary.

Policy #5780 defines “sexual content” as “any form of private sexual activity or intercourse.” Board member Audra Dorn explained the vague term: “If you can do it on a park bench and not get arrested… it’s not ‘inherently private.'” Such a broad definition would essentially exclude all kinds of books that discuss sexual assault, sexual abuse, and rape—subjects that young readers should have access to to protect themselves, and topics that most affect girls, women, and transgender people. Historically, young people’s access to such materials has enabled them to come forward as victims of such horrific acts.

Of course, that’s not the only problem. For young people who are queer or who interact with queer people, everyone–They have the right to read books that center LGBTQ+ voices and experiences and are written for them. You also have the right to access books about adolescence and sex, as they provide a safe, professionally vetted learning space. The books chosen for school and classroom libraries are not chosen at random. From an idea to the final product hitting the shelves, it passes through numerous gates and reviews.

BSSD prohibits any “sexual content” or “gender ideology” for students in eighth grade or younger. Books that were determined to be included in these partisan designations are simply gone. There is no information available about where and how parental rights operate here. These students do not have access to these books in the classroom or library, and parents do not appear to have the right to allow their students access to these books in the high school library.

This raises eternal questions such as which one Parents have rights.

BSSD began fully implementing Policy #5780 at the start of the school year in August. The high school library was closed so that only one librarian could comb through the collection to identify books that violated the Parents’ Bill of Rights. But it wasn’t just about identifying so-called “inappropriate” books. Librarians also had to decide where and how to implement the second part of the new policy. This means providing enough information about the books in the collection so that parents can decide whether to allow their high school students access to the library. That was a very different set of demands than a library serving young students.

As of this writing, books that fall under the committee’s policy definition are labeled to indicate what their content is. Students cannot borrow without their parents’ permission.

The responsibility for determining “sexual content” and “gender ideology” rested with library staff. This is not a bug, but rather a feature of such policies, which allows the most vulnerable to be blamed for oversights and unclear terminology.

Initially, many of the books in K-12 libraries were banned and marked for destruction according to policy. This included five BSSD middle school titles. George/Melissa Written by Alex Gino and It’s too bright to see Written by Kyle Lukoff, thor’s hammer and ship of the dead Written by Rick Riordan No Girls Allowed: Stories of bold women who dress as men Written by Susan Hughes. A further 31 titles were marked at Bellbrook Middle School, including: gap between bones Written by Laura Ruby; paper town Written by John Green, and breakaways Written by Kathy G. Johnson.

But rather than having these books thrown away en masse (which would then give district leaders book labels), these titles were moved to high school libraries. Since these titles are currently inaccessible to the students for whom they were written and published, this transfer still constitutes book censorship.

Nearly 100 books at the high school were found to be out of compliance with district policy. These include popular works of young adult literature such as Ellen Hopkins’ books (which are labeled and restricted as having “sexual content”). love boat, taipei Written by Abigail Hing Wen (labeled and restricted as “sexual content”), like a love story Written by Abdi Nazemian (labeled and restricted as “sexual content”); White people die first: 13 scary stories about fear and power Written by Terry J. Benton Walker (Labeled and Restricted as “Gender Ideology”), most enthusiastically Written by Gabe Cole Novoa (labeled and restricted as “Gender Ideology”), and ash’s cabin Written by Jen Wang (Labeled and Restricted as “Gender Ideology”) Also includes classics often taught in high school. hundred years of solitude Written by Gabriel García Márquez (labeled and restricted as “sexual content”), their eyes were on god Written by Zora Neale Hurston (labeled and restricted as “sexual content”), bluest eyes Prominent Toni Morrison from Ohio (labeled and restricted for “sexual content”); Slaughterhouse 5 Written by Kurt Vonnegut (labeled and restricted as “sexual content”) and The Handmaid’s Tale Written by Margaret Atwood (labeled and restricted as “sexual content”).

A complete list of books can be found here.

BSSD’s policies don’t just apply to libraries. This applies to classroom libraries and books studied in English classes. English educators must identify all books in the classroom and request parental permission for students to access them. As a result, many English language arts departments offered no reading material at all. English language arts educators also need parental permission to read assignments.

Again, it is the teacher’s responsibility to contact parents and obtain permission.

While it was “lucky” for teachers, the school board recognized the hurdles that come with such a large permit application and updated its policy in November. Currently, teachers “only” need to contact parents three times within two weeks. If the student fails, the student will automatically participate in the assignment.

Opt-in policies like BSSD’s are meant to demonstrate that parents agree with rhetoric about how children are being “groomed” by partisan politicians who parrot anecdotes about inappropriate books in school libraries, and by library staff and educators through books that address topics related to gender and sexuality. An opt-in policy that sets access standards to zero for all students, so you know exactly which parents are entitled. It’s a small, vocal minority. ²

largely Parents will not prevent students from accessing classroom or library materials. In fact, at BSSD, 10% of students were denied access to study materials in 2025, compared to just one student the previous year. This increase was not necessarily due to parents agreeing with the policy. Because it was those parents. I didn’t know They were responsible for telling the school that students would have access to classroom instruction and the school library.³

Florida shows evidence of this. States allow parents to decide whether to allow their students access to the school library, and most parents allow their students full access to the library. The percentage of students who intentionally choose restrictions is in the low single digits, and that number is muddied by parents who don’t understand that they need to make such a decision for their student, so the default decision is made on their behalf (i.e., if the district requires opt-in, the student doesn’t have access).

The Bellbrook-Sugarcreek School District board saw an opportunity to overstep its authority under a new Ohio law and did so. It’s likely not the only school district in the state trying to cut off access to information and reading materials for students.

The battle at BSSD is not over yet. In fact, Ohio Reading Rights Advocates is working with Sugarcreek Cares, a local DEI advocacy group, to raise awareness about this policy and how it denies students their right to an education. Right to Read Ohio’s testimony can be heard starting at 55:50.

Ohio Right to Read is encouraging residents who are able to attend the next Bellbrook-Sugarcreek School District Board meeting to do so. It will be held at Bellbrook Middle School on Dec. 11 from 7 p.m. If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, submit a letter to the board about the policy and how it is leading to district-wide book censorship.

Ohio residents are also asked to contact their state House and Senate representatives. House Bill 8 is directly responsible for the BSSD’s censorship of books, and discussions among members during debates about the bill likely included a promise that it would not result in the banning or censorship of books. This year, Texas has been at the center of such debate over Senate Bills 12 and 13, both of which would have targeted classroom curriculum and school library materials alike. Ohio lawmakers need to know that voters are watching what they do and say, and that by watching vaguely worded partisan bills be implemented as expected, they are preparing to run them out of the statehouse to serve manufactured panic and bigotry, not actual voters.

School and public libraries have been targeted by Ohio Republicans. This year, the government voted in favor of budget proposals that not only fundamentally change how public libraries are funded, but also trigger a wave of library levies on local ballots in October (18 of 20 passed, including in Greene County, where BSSD is located). The budget also required all public libraries in Ohio to hide LGBTQ+ books from minors (page 1,307), a portion that was vetoed by the governor. Congress could try to override this veto.

And will it be on deck for the next Congress? House Bill 583 would require public and school libraries to block access to content deemed “unsuitable for minors” or “obscene” in the online databases they provide access to. That is not only an impossible request, but an unreasonable one. Obscene content, as defined by law, does not exist in such databases, and “unsuitable for minors” has no standard definition. At best, this is a bill designed to create mass censorship, and at worst, it’s a bill aimed at forcing libraries to completely suspend subscriptions to online databases.