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Today, we’re covering one community’s fight over a book ban and the success of New York City’s vaccine mandate for nearly all public school employees.

Fights over banned books

The fight over critical race theory has reached the library, as some parents try to ban books that address certain ideas about race, as well as those that address sex and L.G.B.T.Q. issues.

In one recent example from York County, Pa., hundreds of students and teachers won a battle, at least temporarily, against a ban on a selection of books told from the perspective of gay, Black and Latino children.

Here’s the back story: In August 2020, a diversity committee created a list of hundreds of books, documentary films and articles, meant as a resource to help students and teachers grapple with the racial and social turmoil.

Some parents objected. They claimed the materials could be used to “indoctrinate” students or make white children feel guilty. So, in a little-noticed vote last November, the school board banned the all items on the list from classrooms.

At the start of this school year, many teachers were outraged. Students were, too. They protested daily outside school, wrote letters to the local paper and read excerpts from the banned books on Instagram. Local and national news media picked up the story.

After some back and forth, on Sept. 20, the board temporarily lifted the freeze.The York ban was largely symbolic: None of the listed books had been removed from school libraries and teachers already using them were not affected..

Pennsylvania does not have a law banning critical race theory from schools, at least not yet. In states where Republican governors have signed legislation banning critical race theory, books are disappearing from shelves.

In Texas, which has a ban, the Katy school district removed books about young Black boys written by an award-winning Black author, Jerry Craft.

The district also canceled an event with Craft, planned for this week, after parents claimed his books promoted critical race theory.

In Tennessee, a group that calls itself “Moms For Liberty” is trying to use that state’s ban to remove a book written from the perspective of Mexican Americans.

Resources and other censorship news:

Here’s a smart Times story about the history of critical race theory.

Prosecutors may file criminal charges against public librarians in Campbell County, Wyo., after community members said some books about sex education or L.G.B.T.Q. issues are obscene and not suitable for children.

Fairfax County Public Schools, Virginia’s largest district, removed two books from high school libraries after complaints that they had sexually explicit and “homoerotic” content.

And I’d be remiss to not point out that last week was Banned Books Week, an annual national event to educate about ongoing censorship efforts. PEN America compiled a list of recently challenged titles.

New York’s vaccine mandate worked

Thousands of public school employees got a shot in the week before New York City’s vaccine requirement kicked in on Monday. The mandate applies to virtually every public school employee, and there is no test-out option.

About 95 percent of all full-time school employees have received at least one dose of a vaccine, Mayor Bill de Blasio said. That shakes out to 99 percent of principals, 96 percent of teachers and 94 percent of other staff.

The shots accelerated after the city announced the mandate in late August: Since then, health care workers administered roughly 43,000 doses, including more than 18,000 since Sept. 24. (About 150,000 people work in the nation’s largest school system.)

As with all vaccine mandates, New York encountered resistance: About 8,000 unvaccinated people who work in the school system were placed on unpaid leave, officials said on Monday.

Some schools had to call on substitute teachers, but the city worked quickly to handle staff shortages. New York City has a reserve of roughly 9,000 substitute teachers and another 5,000 substitute paraprofessionals who are vaccinated.

“We have a lot of talented young people who are ready to take those jobs,” de Blasio said.

Legal challenges have failed or stalled, too.

One lawsuit, filed by a coalition of unions, was unsuccessful. A group of teachers filed a separate legal mandate, seeking at least a temporary injunction. But Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied their petition to the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday, after two federal courts also denied the request.

The mandate has even increased vaccination rates among members of District Council 37, a union that led the legal and political charge against the mandate. (The union includes school lunch aides, support staff and crossing guards.) A spokeswoman said that 93 percent of its members had now received at least one dose, up from 68 percent last month.

In other vaccine news:

On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California said that students there would have to be vaccinated to attend school as soon as next fall.

The Delta variant has made more parents willing to vaccinate their kids, a new study found.

Other virus news

Masks

Arizona could lose some of its federal recovery funds for misusing the money to undercut school mask requirements. The proposed ban on mask mandates will come before the Arizona Supreme Court, after a lower court ruled it unconstitutional.

The U.S. Justice Department signaled its support for a group of Texas families with disabled children who are suing to overturn Gov. Greg Abbott’s ban on mask mandates.

The Arkansas Supreme Court will not allow the state to enforce its ban on mask mandates.

England’s schools dropped mask mandates in a bid for normalcy, but more than 180,000 students have been absent in recent weeks.

Academics

Only 22.1 percent of students in Oklahoma scored proficient in math in 2021, compared with 31.9 percent in 2019.

One high school near St. Paul, Minn., is trying a staggered schedule to help students make up learning: Those with a C average or higher learn from home on Wednesdays, while students with a C minus or lower go to school for in-person support.

A good read: Officials in Texas estimate that the pandemic undid a decade of academic progress in math, and five years of gains in reading.

What else we’re reading

Police and violence

The Justice Department will deploy federal law enforcement officials to help educators cope with a “disturbing spike” in harassment.

Last week, a school safety officer in Long Beach, Calif. shot at a car speeding away from a high school. The bullet hit Mona Rodriguez, 18, leaving her brain-dead. Her family decided to take her off life-support.

Investigation: Sheriff deputies in California’s Antelope Valley patrol school campuses. They disproportionately cite Black students, LAist reported, often for minor infractions.

College

Lawyers will give their closing arguments in the first trial of the college admissions scandal today.

Students at universities with powerful Greek life cultures are protesting fraternities after accounts of sexual assault or other misconduct.

Nevada will require all employees at its public universities and colleges to get vaccinated by Dec. 1.

And more …

The Biden administration is overhauling a student loan forgiveness program for public service employees.

Superintendents who can hear lead both schools for the deaf and hard of hearing in Georgia.

Tell us about your favorite children’s books

Millions of students across the country are struggling to meet grade level literacy requirements, and a great story can help even the most tentative reader power through.

We want to know about a children’s book you love, and why. Use this form to submit your suggestions. Thank you!

On your way out, check out this smart analysis from The Drift, on the flurry of less than imaginative political biographies for kids. See you next week!

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