Schools racing to protect mixed-status and undocumented students from deportation under Trump

School officials across the country are taking steps to prepare for an onslaught of new deportations under Donald Trump, including the potential that the new administration breaks with longstanding policy and conducts raids at schools themselves.

Districts in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Phoenix have all vowed not to voluntarily assist federal immigration officials, and are training staff about what to do in the event of a request from Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“This community has a high population of undocumented and mixed-status families,” a Phoenix-area school board president, Anna Lynn Abeytia, told The Arizona Republic. “I think families are extremely worried.”

There are an estimated 400,000 undocumented students in higher education across the U.S., and roughly 733,000 school-aged children in the U.S. overall.

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These students and their families could face a number of new challenges under the Trump administration, which has vowed immediately to carry out the largest mass deportations in U.S. history.

Trump officials have also suggested several specific, dramatic policy changes that will hit young people particularly hard, including ending birthright citizenship, resuming family separation, and encouraging families with mixed immigration status to self-deport.

Schools across the country are training staff and formulating policies to prepare for a wave of Trump deportations (Getty Images)
Schools across the country are training staff and formulating policies to prepare for a wave of Trump deportations (Getty Images)

The fate of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which temporarily shields people brought to the U.S. as children illegally, is also unclear under the new administration.

Most pressingly for educators, the Trump transition is reportedly considering rescinding a 2011 directive restricting most immigration actions at so-called “sensitive” locations like churches, hospitals, and schools.

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“Although the protected area policy remains in effect ... it may be modified, superseded, or withdrawn at any time with little notice,” a recent California guidance for schools said. “Because of this, and because exceptions to the policy exist, local educational agencies should have plans in place in the event that a law-enforcement officer requests information or access to a school site or a student for immigration-enforcement purposes.”

Schools across the country are preparing for the worst.

“We have parents who are afraid,” Adam Clark, superintendent of California’s Mount Diablo Unified School District told The New York Times. “We are trying to inform them of what their rights are.”

Biden officials have reportedly met with higher education leaders in recent days to train them on applicable laws, including those shielding the privacy of federal student aid applicants.

They also warn such fears will impact children’s education.

“We understand that fear and uncertainty, especially concerning the potential deportation of family members, can significantly impact our students’ well-being, their attendance, and their ability to learn,” Des Moines, Iowa’s school system said in a statement last month.