Immigration enforcement: Schools line up to protect students
Superintendents in several districts are vowing to protect students from any attempted on-campus enforcement by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
These education leaders are positioning themselves to defy President Donald Trump’s new policy that eliminates schools and churches as sanctuaries and say their districts will not cooperate with ICE patrols of K12 buildings.
Worcester Public Schools Superintendent Rachel Monarrez wrote in a letter to families that the district in Massachusetts’ second-largest city will continue its policy of not asking about students’ immigration status.
“We will not allow ICE agents access to WPS facilities without a criminal judicial warrant signed by a federal judge,” Monarrez declared. “We will not admit ICE agents into schools based on an administrative warrant, an ICE detainer or any other document related to civil immigration enforcement.”
The district has also issued guidance to principals and school-based on “protecting students’ rights, responding to ICE interactions, and supporting students whose parents or guardians may be detained during the school day,” Monarrez added.
Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero has said in recent days that principals should place their buildings on lockdown if ICE agents attempt to enter, The Denver Gazette reported.
“No individual should be permitted to enter the building without ascertaining whether the individual has a legitimate business or educational purpose,” Marrero wrote in a staff memo obtained by The Denver Gazette.
In a message to the community, he urged all families to update individuals authorized to pick their children up from school. “While we still do not know exactly what actions the incoming administration may or may not take at this time, it is important that our families have access to resources and information to establish an action plan,” Marrero wrote.
No longer shielded from immigration enforcement
Trump has alerted immigration and border patrol offices that schools and churches are no longer designated “sensitive areas,” meaning they are no longer off-limits to immigration enforcement actions.
“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” reads last week’s Department of Homeland Security statement. “The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense.”
Just a few days prior to Trump’s action, San Francisco USD in California reaffirmed its status as a safe haven for students, regardless of their immigration status. Just to the south of the city, a group of superintendents in Santa Clara also committed to protecting immigrant students and families.
“We will use all the resources at our disposal to ensure that immigrant students and families are,” those leaders wrote in a letter.
The New Jersey Department of Education has created a webpage with guidance for districts on handling attempted immigration enforcement on school campuses. The Center for Democracy and Technology has released this document that details how immigration enforcement may impact K12 schools and offers recommendations for how schools can meet their long-standing legal obligations.
