Houston schools try to reassure families but offer little ICE guidance
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Houston-area districts have offered little guidance on potential encounters with immigration officers on campus, leaving educators and parents without clear assurances.
Why it matters: Immigration enforcement in schools could be widely disruptive. Even the threat of arrests on campus could result in some students staying home, which would impact school funding.
- Over 40,000 undocumented kids ages 3 to 17 live in Harris County, per the Migration Policy Institute.
Catch up quick: The Trump administration last month announced it was ending the policy of avoiding arrests in schools and other "sensitive" areas.
- Some districts in Denver and San Diego, among others, have vowed to protect student from enforcement on campus.
State of play: The Houston Independent School District did not respond to Axios' requests for comment about its plan and guidance to teachers and administrators for immigration enforcement at schools.
- In late January, HISD superintendent Mike Miles said in an email to the community that student records, including immigration status, are protected under federal law and cannot be accessed without the district's legal services department's approval.
- He added that campus administrators and front office staff are trained to engage with law enforcement.
- "We want to assure you that our policies have not changed, and they align with Houston ISD's mission to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment for all students," Miles said in the statement.
- As of late January, HISD teachers had received no guidance on how to handle U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on campus, the Houston Federation of Teachers told the Houston Chronicle.
Alief ISD and other districts have also emphasized the laws protecting student records. Alief's superintendent on Jan. 23 and Jan. 31 requested that parents update their children's emergency contact information and encouraged students to continue going to school.
The latest: Community Voices for Public Education (CVPE) and HISD parents are planning a sickout Wednesday — similar to the sickout last May — partly in protest of Miles' leadership and the state takeover and partly because of "Miles' weak response on immigration safety in schools," organizers said Monday.
- Ruth Kravetz, who is organizing the sickout, tells Axios that as many as 3,000 students across at least 118 campuses are expected to participate.
What they're saying: "Schools should be safe spaces for students to learn, not hunting grounds for ICE. Mike Miles is not sending a strong enough message of support to immigrant students and needs to take a stronger stand," parent and organizer Briana Mohan said in a statement.
- Mohan, whose children will participate in the sickout, tells Axios Mile's letter regarding ICE was not reassuring.
The other side: "The safest place for our students to be during the school week is in school," Alexandra Elizondo, HISD chief of public affairs and communications, said in a statement online in response to the sickout.
- "It is entirely irresponsible for CVPE to cynically exploit people's legitimate concerns about federal immigration policy to push their own political agenda about the state intervention. Encouraging students to skip school only hurts students."
What we're watching: More than two dozen Democratic state lawmakers in late January asked the Texas Education Agency to issue guidance for districts on how to prepare for immigration enforcement actions.
- It's unclear if TEA responded or is working on guidance.
Go deeper: What schools can and can't do to stop ICE enforcement