Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Board protects students
Vote designates schools safe amid deportations
A high school senior walked into class about a month ago and told his teacher that his family had been detained for deportation.
Broward County school district employees rushed to help him, alerting teachers to look after him and calling nonprofits to get him housing and some cash.
School district officials, citing federal privacy law, released no specifics on the student or his school. But they are preparing to see more such situations under President Donald Trump’s recent order for widespread deportations. So, on Tuesday, the Broward School Board declared schools a protected space for students, and put guidelines in place to help those left stranded.
“These children are now being told at any moment your mom, your dad, someone from your family will be deported. And we’re asking families in the community to take extreme measures to make plans for their children in case they’re gone,” said Ana Valladares, president of Mujeres Latinas in Broward County, a support
organization for Latinas. “Maybe you go to school this morning and you come home and your parents aren’t there anymore.”
The board’s resolution designates school grounds and education-related activities — including prom or football tournaments — as safe zones from immigration enforcement. It also asserts that staff will demand judicial warrants from federal agents seeking student information and the school district’s attorney will determine whether to allow the request.
The resolution also requires the board to establish a plan within 60 days to help students left orphaned by detained or deported parents.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has generally avoided taking undocumented people from sensitive places such as hospitals, churches and schools.
But Board member Robin Bartleman said parents are still fearful, so the resolution serves as a message to them that they shouldn’t be afraid to take their kids to school.
In addition, the school district has legal authority to determine who is allowed on its property and require warrants before any law enforcement enters, said Charles Elsesser, an attorney and Co Founder at Community Justice Project.
The resolution, which passed unanimously, came after a about a couple of hours of debate and several residents of Broward and Miami-Dade counties calling on the board to take action and make history.
“Slavery was a law … gay marriage was against the law … we are now in a situation where there is another moral imperative,” said Alanna Mersinger. “Have the courage to stand up and say: If it is not the law, we will take it to court. Our children are worth it.”
Trump on Jan. 25 issued executive orders that called for hiring 5,000 more border patrol agents and 10,000 more immigration officers to find and deport a broader pool of those in the country illegally.
Those targeted included anyone who has committed an action that could be considered criminal, misrepresented themselves before a government agency or who, “in the judgment of an immigration officer, otherwise poses a risk to public safety or national security.”
South Florida immigrant families have reacted by going into hiding, sending their kids to school with other families so they’re not singled out, or keeping them out of school, local immigrant support groups say.
Mavi Ramirez, a Broward County parent, said the children are struggling to learn under the stress.
“You’re in fight-or-flight mode. What is school work if tomorrow I’m going to be ripped from here and I’m not going to be able to take my grades with me?” said Ramirez, whose family left Medellín, Colombia, when the country was in the grip of drug lords. “What is school work if my family is torn apart?”
Ramirez’s mother traded her life as a business owner for life as a housekeeper in Miami. She told her kids to take alternate routes to school to avoid getting caught by officials. They moved a lot until her mom was finally able to pay for everyone’s legal status.
Latino student attendance has dropped at some Broward schools but staff is not sure that fear of deportation is driving the drop, said Victoria Saldala, director of the Bilingual program.
Palm Beach County School officials said that fear may be steering some students away from school. Some 8.5 percent of Hispanic elementary school girls missed at least 11 days of school, up from 6.3 percent the year before. Boys saw a similar surge.
The district recently sent a letter to parents assuring them that it is not allowed to ask about immigration status or share student educational records without parental consent, a court order or a subpoena.
“It does not matter how or when you came to our community — please know that your child is always welcome at our schools and our school communities,” the letter stated.
Bartleman said she wants families to know the district “has their back.”
“Your child is safe in our schools,” she said. “For many, that’s the place where they get two meals, it’s where they get education and where they’re going to grow. And they have to feel safe.”