Are deportation fears keeping Fresno kids from school? ‘Noticeable attendance issues’
School board trustees and immigrant community leaders want to assure families that schools are safe and it’s important for children to be in school, regardless of their parents’ citizenship status, amid fears of deportation raids in the Central Valley.
California’s public schools have not traditionally been a target of immigration enforcement, as ICE typically discourages deportations in sensitive locations such as schools, hospitals and places of worship. There have been no reports of school raids.
But some schools have reported increases in student absenteeism as some families kept their children home from school following last week’s Border Patrol raids in Kern County.
In Bakersfield, Kern County’s largest elementary school district of more than 30,000 students, reported a slight decrease in attendance last week compared to the same time last year.
“We have heard anecdotally that some families expressed fear over sending their children to school last week given the (Border Patrol) actions occurring around Kern County,” said Timothy Fulenwider, executive director for instruction support services at Bakersfield City School District. “In addition, we have heard anecdotally from staff, students, and parents that many are concerned for friends and relatives as well as what the future may hold.”
Last week, an email the district sent to its employees went viral on social media about how school administrators should respond to deportation officials, including instructions on documenting raids if U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up on campus. Fulenwider said the email was issued to remind staff of the district’s existing procedures for ensuring the safety of students. A state law passed in 2018 requires school districts to establish model policies regarding immigration enforcement in public schools.
In Fresno, immigrant rights groups said they’ve been flooded with calls from school districts to host informational sessions where families can learn about their constitutional rights.
Margarita Rocha, executive director of Centro La Familia Advocacy Services, said the organization is fielding more calls than its normal caseload from families who are worried about their immigration statuses and wary of taking their kids to public places, such as grocery stores and schools.
“We heard parents are afraid to do their daily work and daily activities for the fear that they leave home and they will not be there when their children return home,” Rocha said.
The Fresno County Office of Education, which oversees 31 local school districts, said some districts have reported “noticeable attendance issues during the winter season.”
“We recognize that recent immigration enforcement activities in the region have created uncertainty and concern for many families, potentially impacting attendance in specific areas, particularly for non-mandatory programs,” the county education office told The Bee in a statement.
Local school districts told The Bee that they are closely monitoring attendance, distributing red cards, partnering with attorneys and groups to provide free counseling to families, and preparing specialized staff to work directly with concerned families.
“We have been concerned about dips in attendance out of fear but thankfully that has not been the case yet,” said Nikki Henry, spokesperson for Fresno Unified School District. “Overall, we’re still a bit higher on our average daily attendance than this time last year but we are paying attention to a few schools where we see they’ve dipped to find out what may be the cause.”
Henry said the district won’t disclose exactly which sites are experiencing declining attendance because it could cause speculation about where immigrant families live. A Fresno Unified trustee also shared hearing that families with mixed statuses are afraid of being torn apart.
The district urges families to plan ahead, including updating their child’s emergency card at school and considering completing a caregiver authorization affidavit.
Some school boards, such as Central Unified and Fresno Unified, have passed nonbinding resolutions affirming to families that schools will not aid in the government’s immigration enforcement efforts.
“Immigrants are not scary. They are our neighbors, our co-workers, our friends and our families and our students,” said Nabil Kherfan, Central Unified board member, at a press conference on Thursday. “The law has been settled long ago, all children are entitled to a public education, and we’ll do what we can to advocate and protect all of our students.”
Kherfan proposed at Tuesday’s board meeting that the district should provide notice to parents if raids are coming to a school.
“I’ve been talking to trustees across California and one of the ideas that came up is messages that go out when we lockdown schools whether there’s a school shooting or something in the neighborhood. What if we have something like this to keep parents safe, and we don’t have family separations,” he said.
This story was originally published January 17, 2025 at 2:42 PM.
