Strathmore schools declared to be unaffected by recent book bans

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Public schools in Strathmore are reported to have been entirely unaffected by recent bans ordered by the province.

Jeff Grimsdale, superintendent of schools for Golden Hills School Division, though he declined to comment on record, did confirm that the school division already did not keep titles in its collections which had been deemed inappropriate for students. 

Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides issued an order, Sept. 8, requiring school boards to submit lists of the books they were removing from shelves by the end of that month.

The province’s two largest divisions, Calgary Board of Education (CBE) reported removing 44 titles, and the Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) removed 34.

Rocky View Public Schools reported the removal of 35 titles from their shelves in order to come into compliance with the order. 

As of Jan. 5, Ministerial Order 034/2025, the Standards for the Selection, Availability and Access of School Literacy Materials came into effect. 

Under this order, school authorities are to ensure that materials featured in schools containing any explicit visual depiction of a sexual act are not accessible or available to children or students. 

Instead of providing explicitly defined lists to school divisions, the province has indicated themes and content within the order for schools to locate individually and remove from their libraries.

The only exception being materials such as dictionaries, technical materials or encyclopedias which are used for reference purposes and are not narrative in nature. 

Chestermere-Strathmore MLA Chantelle de Jonge declined a request for comment regarding the bans; instead issuing a brief statement in support of the order. 

“Children should never be exposed to images of masturbation, sex toy use, oral sex, or child molestation in a school library book,” she said. “That is why we created a policy to ensure these materials are not accessible to students, while also giving parents greater autonomy to know what books are in their child’s classroom. This is about protecting children and empowering parents.”

It is also outlined in the order that parents of children or students who are able to access a teacher’s classroom collection are to be informed of the titles being personally made available.

Several titles which previously occupied recommended reading lists, particularly for high school students that are now being challenged on school shelves today include The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Catcher in the Rye, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Brave New World. 

Rachel Dick Hughes, director of library services for the Strathmore Municipal Library, also declined to comment on record regarding the recent bans. 

The Strathmore Municipal Library engages in Freedom to Read week in Canada, which runs from Feb. 22 to 28.