Recordpub.com - Mom seeks to ban book in Ravenna Parent says material too adult for students

By Jason De Leon

Record-Courier staff writer

Because of a parent"s formal complaint, a national award winning young adult novel currently is under the microscope of the Ravenna Board of Education.

Angela Calo, mother of a seventh-grader at Brown Middle School is requesting "America," a novel by E.R. Frank, be withdrawn from the district, according to the written complaint submitted to the superintendent"s office.

"What we kept finding and going over was sexual content and profanity," Calo said. "Yes, we decided it was not suitable for any child."

The novel, which deals mostly with the effects of childhood trauma, was part of a free reading library in the classroom of Cathy Adler, who teaches gifted and talented students at Brown Middle School. It is not, however, on any required reading lists within the city"s school district.

Before allowing students to read the novel, Adler informed students the novel had "raw material," according to Calo.

The author of the novel and licensed clinical social worker with post master"s experience and training in trauma has been counseling for 15 years.

"If a parent chooses to screen what their child is reading it is all right," Frank said Tuesday.

"I don"t think one parent"s decision should limit others from reading it in the community," she added. "My style of writing is that I try to convey as much authenticity as I can. While it is unfortunate and may be disturbing, foul language and clinical references to body parts and sexual violence exist in our world and for our children, which is very sad but it is real. I do not try to write to be a sensationalist."

The novel"s main character, America, is a 15 year-old male who experienced a series of traumatic events as a child and is seeking guidance from his psychologist.

According to Calo, the novel talks about child abuse, sexual and mental abuse and it should be intended for college level students or higher.

According to Calo"s request in the formal in complaint, "America" should be replaced by a novel that "has the same story line without profanity and sexual orientation," she said.

"The book has inappropriate language and sexual activities, such as masturbation that is for adult content only," Calo added.

The formal complaint filed by Calo is a first for Superintendent Tim Calfee, who has been with the district for 6 years.

"We will review it according to our policy," Calfee said. "(The school"s administration) is reading the book. The reviews are actually pretty positive."

"The book deals with problems that unfortunately are all too common in our society but they are types of things you hear about on the news everyday," he added.

A committee will review the book and report to the school board with a recommendation.

Frank has experienced other similar cases including a school district in California that reviewed her novel.

"Several students came to the committee (in California) and testified if (the school district) banned the book they would be trying to deny the very same experiences that students have had," Frank said. "The book was not banned based on their testimony. I am touched they came forward."

"America" has received several awards including the New York Times Notable Book Award. It also was a Garden State Teen Book Award nominee. Actress and childhood neglect advocate Rosie O"Donnell has drafted a screenplay intended for its adaptation as a film.

Calo also is concerned with two novels expected to be on next year"s approved reading list for the school district, "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson and "Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes" by Chris Crutcher.

"Speak" already has been withdrawn from Aurora City School District, according to Calo.

"Books shouldn"t be censored by the distress of one parent," Frank said. "I am honored to be in the same company (of authors Anderson and Crutcher)."

Each novel addresses issues dealing with childhood trauma.

More than 1 million children in the country are assaulted, robbed or raped each year. Every year, three to 10 million children in the U.S. are exposed to domestic violence, according to Children"s Advantage in Ravenna.

More than 25 percent of the nation"s youth experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, also according to Children"s Advantage.

For child trauma area clinic information contact Children"s Advantage at (330) 296-5552.

26.	Posted by Katrina35 April 10, 2007
	Freedom of speach and freedom to read what you want is a wonderful thing in this world and thats very true. People want to ban video games because of sexual content, swearing and violence. Your child is not allowed to go into a Rated "R" movie without an adult present. I wonder if you see something wrong with any of this. Your child cannot go into a video game store and buy a video game thats rated "R" or teen for that matter without an adult present. Would it be ok if the teacher read the book to the class and spoke the language that was in the book instead of the child reading it? I think not. There are codes of conduct that we all must abide by. What if a child wrote a report about real things that happened in life and turned it in to the teacher and it had alot of fowl language and sexual content? I'm sure that wouldn't be permitted. I'm really just wondering what the difference is? Because a well known author wrote it makes it ok. These books are sold in book stores that you and your child can read on your own time and thats the real issue. There are millions of books out there that can be read by your child in school. It is not people like me that want to control everything, this comes down to standards and what a child should be subjected to reading for school!!! I know school board members from other schools that read the books themselves before they are given to children to read and if they contain such things like this book does then they are not permitted to pass and the school board declines. Its very upsetting that children have to read these things in such graphic nature and some children are not mature enough to understand it all. They should not be reading it at this age, this is something for much older kids to be reading, not 12 & 13 year olds. Is it really that bad to ban books from school with such content? I was offended when my daughter came home from school upset because her friend of another race was called names that adult people in the entertainment world get penalized for. Kids get suspended from school for using sexual slang remarks to other children. Whats the difference? Children are being taught to say these things and they learn it from tv and movies just as much as books.

25.	Posted by Mya_2412 April 10, 2007
	I was giving my opinion about Cathy Adler to let those people that HAVE said things about her know that she is a good teacher, even though I addressed it to you. And that�s great that your daughter doesn�t use foul language. My daughter doesn�t use foul language either, but the fact of the matter is, it�s a book, it�s about life and it�s things that do happen in life. Just because someone reads a book like the ones that certain parents want banned, doesn�t mean the children use that kind of language. No one was 'teaching� foul language at Brown or at any of the other schools in Ravenna. The child had a choice and she choose to read the book. If she knew that her mother would object, then she shouldn�t have read it. The fact is, that NO, kids shouldn�t and ARE NOT "learning by swearing" and NO I do not think they should. The problem is people like you that want to control EVERYTHING that EVERYONE else is doing. Last time I knew, this is America and we have a right to choose what we and our kids read. If you and Mrs. Calo don�t want your children reading those types of books, fine, don�t let them. But who are you or her to say what other kids can read? And that�s the REAL issue!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

22.	Posted by Mya_2412 April 7, 2007
	Well hello Katrina35. My husband and a number of friends of mine had Cathy Adler when they were younger. EVERYONE loved her. They still do. I am a parent of one of the students of Cathy Adler. The children that you speak of ARE old enough to make and understand the issue. WHO ARE YOU to say they aren�t old enough to understand what�s going on in their classroom? WHO ARE YOU to say they are bashing a mother? They are expressing their GOD given right to give their opinions about things that are affecting their lives. My child DOES come to me and talk to me about EVERYTHING under the sun, including sex, etc. I, unlike a lot of parents, do care about what my child does and how her life is going. She knows she can come to me about anything. And if I am unable to help her, I will find that help for her. I do agree that SOME parents leave too much up to the teachers and that�s exactly what Mrs. Calo did. If SHE was so concerned about what her daughter would be reading or even doing in class, she would have went to each teacher to find out. Because like you said, "parents leave too much up to teachers and schools to teach their children about life and the good and the bad." My child is also a very mature person and well brought up. My daughter is a gifted child that is why she�s in Cathy Adler�s class, just like the rest of the kids that posted on here. I�m sure Mrs. Calo�s daughter might be "mature", but if that was the case, then she should have been able to handle what was in the book or she should have said, "I am not allowed to read this book." That is what a mature person would have done.

20.	Posted by h_skinner April 6, 2007
	What is this woman�s problem!? First of all, Mrs. Alder is one of the greatest people I know. She is there for her students when they need her most. Not only is she a teacher, she is a mentor. She goes above and beyond what a normal teacher would do, because at the end of the week, she isn�t worried about getting her paycheck. She�s worried about us. Her students�Actually, her children. Mrs. Adler is the most caring person I know. She�ll sit there and listen to you, without judging you. She helps you with your problems. And she, unlike many other adults, remembers what it was like being in middle school. This woman would never do anything to hurt anyone purposely. Nor, would she let her students read something that she thought was too adult for them to handle. She didn�t make Alainee pick up that book. She even told her it had stuff in there that she may not be able to handle. But, she picked it up and read it anyways. Whose fault is that? Alainee�s. Second, what is going to happen when Alainee gets out in the real world, and she discovers that it isn�t rainbows and unicorns like her mother is putting into her head? And, you can�t say that she isn�t, because she isn�t letting her daughter read stuff that happens in real life! People get raped. People cuss. People masturbate. It�s sad that people rape others, but it does happen. There isn�t anything anyone can do about it. Cussing isn�t the worst thing you can do! And as for masturbating, at least you aren�t going out having sex with everyone that is willing. They all happen every day. I hear people cussing and talking about masturbation every single day. And, I know for a fact that everyone in my school [including Alainee] hears it too. Also, who in the good name of the Lord above gave her the right to decide what every kid in Ravenna is going to read? I�m sorry, but she isn�t anyone to me, and she WILL NOT decided what I read. If she wants to censure what her daughter reads, that is fine. But I will be damned if I let her censure what I read. She IS NOT my mother. Someone needs to give her a reality check, because it appears that she thinks she knows what is best for every child in the Ravenna school district, and she doesn�t. Oh, and Mrs. Calo, you should tell your daughter what she can and can�t read. And when the teacher FLAT OUT TELLS HER that there is 'raw material� in it that she isn�t allowed to read it. Don�t punish all of Ravenna�s students because you and your family are narrow-minded. Ps. Everyone, make sure you go to chriscrutcher.com and get your Read Crutcher? @#$% YES! wristbands.

17.	Posted by Jakedubz April 4, 2007
	I, like lots of students who commented on this page, think that Mrs. Adler is one of the greatest teachers. I am a freshman, and I had Mrs. Adler as a teacher for two years. Why does she have to go through this bull crap? Does the mother want attention? If she does, then she definately has it already. I mean, she brought it to FOX News! Is that a little to far? I think so. I'm also sure that she brought it to other news channels, too. It's not that big of a problem, and all you have to do Mrs. Calo is simply remove the book from your child's hands. I'm not trying to act like I am a parent because I'm only fifteen, I just think that it would be better off to simply take it from your daughter and put it away. You should control what your CHILD reads, not EVERYONE's child. Anyways, it is even approved for young readers. It teaches them about things they should avoid. It's not like it's a pornography magazine with sex in it! Also, everyone knows that your daughter wasnt FORCED to read this. She picked it up to read for her own pleasure. Mrs. Adler always warns students about content in the book. You've made a lot of people stressed out and mad about this. Hope that you read this, Mrs. Calo. Maybe it will tell you to stop. You've done enough already.