The Stakes: Oakland schools work to protect immigrant families as ICE threatens sanctuary spaces

“The Stakes” is a UC Berkeley Journalism project on executive orders and actions affecting Californians and their communities. 

Since President Donald Trump took office in January, Jessie Papalia has felt the panic and confusion among her students and their families at Bridges Academy Elementary in Oakland, a dual-language school with many students who have recently arrived in the United States. 

“The first week was rough. I had kids asking me if they could sleep at school because they were too scared to go home,” Papalia said. “It was not a good time.”

The fear came after the Trump administration rescinded a policy that had protected schools from immigration enforcement, making families afraid, Papalia said. 

The directive issued by the Department of Homeland Security allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection to make arrests in areas that were previously protected, such as schools, hospitals and places of worship. The shifting immigration policies have made it challenging for educators to keep immigrant students in the classroom and educate them and their families on what to do if they encounter immigration enforcement.

Javier Ochoa, a community schools director at King Elementary School in Richmond, said parents are cautious about bringing their children to school out of fear of family members being caught in the streets at the wrong time. 

“Kids aren’t coming to school. Attendance has always not been great, and so that’s just the reality. But I do think immigration does play a role in it. And as far as I’ve heard, the district does not accept that excuse,” Ochoa said. 

Sanctuary policies

The Trump Administration has lifted policies for protected areas, but California’s sanctuary state law, passed in 2017 during the first Trump Administration, limits public schools from assisting with immigration enforcement. It also requires schools to develop guidelines on how to respond to ICE. A bill in the state Senate set for a hearing later this month would beef up that protection, by prohibiting schools from permitting ICE on site unless a judicial warrant or court order is produced. 

Additionally, individual districts including Oakland Unified and West Contra Costa Unified, have adopted sanctuary policies to protect students and families regardless of their legal status and prohibit district staff from cooperating with immigration enforcement. 

“The only thing that the ICE policy does is tell ICE officers, ‘You are now directed to try to enforce immigration on school campuses.’ But if California educators and administrators perform their legal obligations, they won’t allow ICE into the schools,” said Abby Sullivan Engen, an immigrant rights attorney for Centro Legal de La Raza, a legal aid organization in Oakland. 

OUSD partners with Centro Legal de La Raza to train staff to help newcomer students understand their immigration cases and identify which students are in urgent need of a consultation with a lawyer. The organization also provides “Know Your Rights” training to teachers and afterschool care providers.

Engen said immigration lawyers can tell people what their rights are, but that’s only the first step. Teachers who interact with families concerned about ICE should reinforce the importance of knowing their constitutional rights and how to exercise them. 

Papalia is the chair of the Oakland Education Association’s newcomer committee, which writes proposals and bargains for support for newcomer students in union contracts. The union has provided training for staff to be prepared for different scenarios involving ICE. 

Despite concerns that deportation threats may discourage families in OUSD from sending their children to school, the number of students absent in Oakland schools has remained consistent over the past three academic years. Since 2022, the percentage of students absent during the months of January, February and March ranged from 10 to 12%, district data shows.

Families, however, have been hesitant to attend training sessions that the district has set up to help them navigate immigration policies, Papalia said. “You don’t want to put your name on a list to go to a family emergency plan training, which is super important,” she said. “But also, people feel like they’re putting a target on their back.” 

OUSD communications manager Ericka Doolittle did not address Oakland North’s questions about whether the district provides alternative learning options for students whose families may feel cautious about bringing their children to school. 

The West Contra Costa district is supporting students and families by providing resources, legal assistance and a safe environment, WCCUSD spokesperson Raechelle Forrest said in an email to Richmond Confidential. Forrest said the district offers alternative learning options for students, including online programs, to accommodate families’ needs and ensure continuous education for students.

Forrest said there hasn’t been a significant drop in attendance since the start of the year. But WCCUSD did not respond to a March 26 public record request for total weekly attendance, though it is required by law to respond to such requests within 10 days. 

‘I don’t have answers’

As a community school director, Ochoa focuses on bringing in immigration, mental health, and housing resources to Richmond’s King Elementary. He also hosts parent meetings, where immigration is a consistent topic. Although Ochoa has heard some parents say they don’t want to send their children to school, he is unable to offer a solution.

“I try to give them that side of me where I can be relatable, but I don’t know. I don’t have answers,” Ochoa said.

Providing red cards with constitutional rights is one way Ochoa has been able to help students and families, but organizing a workshop for them has been difficult. He said some immigration support organizations require a minimum of 75 attendees, a number his school cannot reach on its own.

The community group Reimagine Richmond has been providing “Know Your Rights” training to Richmond high schoolers for over a year. It also has worked with United Teachers of Richmond to train elementary and middle school teachers to protect students in the classroom.

Marisol Cantú, a leading organizer for Reimagine Richmond, said the group had to adjust its training to let people know that schools were no longer designated safe zones.

The training, conducted in English and Spanish, includes a review of California protections, videos demonstrating different scenarios where an individual might encounter immigration enforcement, role playing and reciting constitutional rights. The group also shares family preparedness plans and directs students to immigration law clinics and attorneys if they have questions about their immigration cases. 

Cantú said teachers and parents have been working together to help families who are afraid to leave their homes by forming carpools to get students to school.

“These are ways that we’ve been able to empower students, and yet the fears linger,” Cantú said. “The impact is felt. And I think we’re all still grappling with ensuring the district has protocols and policies to protect students.”

(Top photo: A “Know Your Rights” training session, courtesy of Reimagine Richmond)

This story was co-published with Richmond Confidential and Local News Matters.

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