ICE Encounters and Failures in Ed Leadership

Michael Elsen-Rooney, Gwynne Hogan, and Alex Zimmerman for Chalkbeat New York on Eric Adams and Immigration, "'Everyone is scared’: Deportation fears keep immigrant students home from NYC schools":

... Adams has also cultivated an increasingly close relationship with Trump, sitting down with his “Border Czar” to discuss shared priorities, visiting Trump in Mar-A-Lago, and attending the inauguration in Washington, D.C., on Monday. Adams, who was indicted on federal corruption charges last year and could theoretically receive a pardon from Trump, has said his efforts to cooperate with the new administration are for the benefit of the city, and that his focus for immigration enforcement is on people who have committed crimes.

For anyone that has eyes, it is unmistakable that the only way to attempt to survive in the current political climate is to play ball. Many of the most powerful people in the country are bending over backwards in order to appease the current administration, in a perhaps not-so-subtle attempt to evade political retribution or gain favor for if things go south.

Speaking of which, the authors continue:

The mayor has said he will not criticize Trump publicly, and declined to take a stance on Trump’s decision to open the door to ICE making arrests at schools — a position some educators said undercuts his attempts to reassure educators and immigrant families.

The cowardice that Adams has shown in this nightmare scenario demonstrates the sheer spinelessness that our most powerful leaders are demonstrating.

So many articles in the education space this last week have revolved around creating clear plans and procedures for ICE interactions with staff and students, maintaining schools as a safe place as the threat of attendance decline looms, and sharing resources with families so that they can work within the confines of the law to protect themselves. What is heartbreaking, though, are the schools that are wholly unprepared to deal with these interactions, and have waited until the midnight hour to create such policies.

Schools had a responsibility to figure this out back in November. My district, with over a thousand students learning English as a second language, many of which from Latin America, waited until this week to issue communication to families. It is just too little too late. People are scrambling for answers in their time of need, and educational leaders need to step up to ensure students and families are equipped with the tools to work within the confines of a law as these political threats become a reality.

A vacuum of information and a thrown together policy due to lack of definitive leadership is creating chaos. As of the writing of this, it is still unclear if an encounter at a Chicago Public School actually occurred earlier today.

Families are afraid. Students are afraid. Undocumented faculty and staff are facing pressures on all sides of their personal and professional lives. This cowardice and unpreparedness of governmental and educational leaders is an embarrassing blunder for educational institutions throughout the US.