Educators Must Step Up Now!
In 1982 in Plyler vs. Doe, the U. S. Supreme Court ruled that “denying undocumented children of illegal immigrants the right to attend public school constitutes discrimination based on alienage that violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.” (www.uscourts.gov)
The incoming administration has promised mass deportations, and many families fear for their future. Imagine being a student going to school not knowing if your parents will be gone when you get home. Imagine being afraid to go to school, to seek medical attention when you need it, to go to work.
But schools, like hospitals, places of worship, and libraries, are currently considered “sensitive places,” meaning ICE officials [with few exceptions] cannot enter them to arrest and deport people. (www.nbcnews.com) And a U. S. Government Fact Sheet, “Information on the Rights of All Children to Enroll in School,” says schools may ask for proof of age and residency, but “A school district may not ask about your or your child’s citizenship or immigration status to establish residency within the district, nor may a school district deny a homeless child (including a homeless child who is undocumented) enrollment because he or she cannot provide the required documents to establish residency.” (www.ed.gov)
Now Oklahoma wants to mandate that students provide proof of citizenship when they enroll in seeming violation of that ruling. The proposed law does stipulate “its language shall not be construed to inhibit any student from receiving the education they’re entitled to under state and federal law. It also prohibits the data outlined in the proposed section be used to record an individual.” (www.oklahoman.com) “It’s hurtful, and it’s going to create fear,” said Nick Migliorino, superintendent of the Norman Public Schools, south of Oklahoma City. “Not educating kids because of the status of their parents helps nobody.” (Ibid.)
Oklahoma is not alone. California voters passed Proposition 187 in 1994, denying undocumented immigrants access to public education and other services. It required teachers to report students they suspected were undocumented to authorities. But advocates and federal courts found it unconstitutional. (history.com) Alabama HB 56, which was overturned by the federal courts, would have required schools to collect data on undocumented students, though it would not have prohibited their attendance. (americanbar.org) Utah Republican state lawmaker Trevor Lee sponsored a proposed constitutional amendment to “limit the public education system to children who are citizens of the United States or legal residents of the United States,” which he later withdrew. (sltrib.com) In 2022 in Tennessee, Rep. Bruce Griffey, R-Paris, sponsored HB1648, that would allow local educational agencies or public charter schools to deny enrollment to students based on their immigration status. (tennesseelookout.com) Now Tennessee Republicans are pushing a new school voucher bill that would not allow undocumented students to participate (newschannel9.com), a clear violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
Last December Trump said he supports deporting mixed-status families, meaning families with some members who are U.S. citizens. “The only way you don’t break up the family is you keep them together,” Trump said in a television interview, “and you have to send them all back.” (www.usatoday.com) Where is due process and protection under the law for those citizens?
As “protected areas or sensitive locations,” schools have been off limits for ICE agents at least since 2011. Raids on schools are harmful. “Research shows that enrollment of Hispanic students in school drops, especially in the elementary grades, when ICE and local law enforcement partner to enforce immigration laws. Following a raid at a Tennessee meatpacking plant in 2019, hundreds of students in the local district were absent.” (www.the74million.org)
Yet these legal sanctuaries may lose their status under the incoming administration, however, as detailed in Project 2025. (www.nbcnews.com)
Until then, educators and employees at all these locations need to know the law and protect the rights of their students. Viridiana Carrizales, the CEO of ImmSchools, an organization that trains schools on supporting immigrant students, says “it’s vital that school staff are trained on FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, a federal law governing the privacy of student records. Under FERPA, school personnel cannot disclose a student’s records to an immigration official unless the school has consent from the student’s parent or the official has a valid subpoena or court order.” (usatoday.com2)
On January 6, 2025, Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. Alberto Carvalho “highlighted mandatory upcoming training for employees about what assistance or documentation they cannot or should not provide to federal immigration authorities.” The district will also provide Know Your Rights cards and state-funded mental health support for students that will be available online or by phone. (www.latimes.com)
LA is not alone. “Teachers in the Chicago schools and the nation’s two big teachers unions acting jointly in California are hatching plans to protect their students, and specifically their undocumented students, from Donald Trump-ordered raids on schools.” (www.peoplesworld.org) Suburban school districts in the Chicago area, which the new border czar has said will be one of the first targets, are reaching out to families, trying to ease fears. (abc7chicago) My local political activism group is meeting with school leaders in our towns, providing resources and information to ensure that they provide students with all the legal protections to which they are entitled.
Other districts are leading, too. New York City has directed educators who are concerned about their students being deported to online information sessions hosted by Project Rousseau, a nonprofit that provides legal services to immigrants. (nytimes.com) The Boston Teachers Union offers events and web resources to support undocumented students. (www.bostonpublicschools.org)
This blog is not the place for a discussion of how vital immigrants are to our economy, how they hold jobs native-born Americans often won’t take, how they contribute more in taxes and business development than they take. (cmsny.org) This blog is for educators. Let us remind ourselves: We all need to be aware of the tremendous toll that Trump’s planned mass deportations will take on some of our students and their families. We have responsibilities as well as rights. It’s up to us to uphold the law and be sure that our students are protected by it.
