Students, teachers, and families across the country are anxious and uncertain about the potential impact of President Trump's strict immigration policies. This fear is not unfounded. In his inaugural address, President Trump claimed he would send “millions and millions” of undocumented immigrants back to their countries of origin. Moreover, less than a day after taking office, he revoked a long-standing policy that had prevented federal immigration enforcement from making arrests at schools and other sensitive locations, such as hospitals and places of worship.

As the U.S. Education Department affirms, ALL children in the United States are entitled to a public education regardless of their “immigration status, which includes the estimated 600,000 undocumented K-12 students in the United States. 

Schools are the most important places of opportunity for students, families, and communities as such, schools should also be safe places that cultivate belonging and steward student success. Unfortunately, Trump's hard line on immigrants not only threatens the delicate ecosystems of our communities but now threatens the very fabric of our school communities and the purpose they serve in the lives of children and young people. 

Trump's false narrative on immigrants has forced schools and communities to live in fear.  This fear-mongering doesn’t just hurt immigrant or undocumented families; it ripples and harms entire communities. 

As columnist Perry Bacon recently wrote in The Washington Post, “This administration is breaking with the idea that schools should be an accepting and reassuring space for young people. Children don’t have to have an immigrant parent to struggle with this moment. It’s hard to imagine how armed law enforcement activity on campus could help them feel safer or help them learn more.”

What emerges from this type of free-for-all law enforcement in our schools is a perpetuation of the school-to-prison pipeline, a disturbing national trend where students are funneled out of public schools and into the juvenile and criminal justice systems. For undocumented students, this culture of criminalization continues through the school-to-deportation pipeline, continuing to deny too many kids the opportunity to grow, learn, make mistakes, and still reach their full potential.

A significant factor that fuels the school-to-prison and school-to-deportation pipeline is the regular presence of law enforcement in our schools.  The impacts of cops in schools on student discipline are well-documented.  This includes the fact that increases in the number of SROs (school resource officers) and law enforcement in schools are associated with increases in the use of suspensions and expulsions and increased interaction with the criminal legal system. Suspensions, expulsions, and even minor disciplinary actions can put undocumented students on ICE’s (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) radar. 

This is particularly harmful to Black, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ students who are targeted and arrested in schools at higher rates.  Black students account for 33% of student arrests, disabled students represent 28%, and LGBTQIA+ students represent 20%. Many of the offenses reported by SROs are trivial.  Incidents such as throwing a tantrum or drawing on school property should be handled by a school administrator, not the police. 

When families are broken up because of deportation or are forced to live in fear of ICE, it doesn’t just hurt them—it hurts entire communities. A school that loses students to deportation becomes a fractured environment. Friends lose classmates. Teachers lose their students. Sports teams, classes, clubs, and neighborhoods become emptier, businesses lose customers, and families live in constant fear. Schools must be supported in creating supportive and welcoming environments for everyone. Failure to do so can be devastating.  

On February 11th in Gainesville, Texas, 11-year-old Jocelynn Rojo Carranza was found unresponsive and later passed away. After experiencing relentless harassment and bullying from her peers who said they would call ICE and take her parents away, Jocelynn took her life. Jocelynn, and the family and community are forever broken. 

MomsRising is working to provide the most up-to-date resources and information to protect vulnerable families and communities. We all hold the power to keep our school spaces free of criminalization and a place where students feel safe and welcome. It will take all of us to create these cultures in our schools and communities.   The resources below provide scripts, outlines, and educational information that can help you educate yourself and support students, educators, and your school community in being a place where children thrive, and families are supported. 

Here are resources to support you in educating yourself and loved ones, taking action in your own school, and working with parents and caregivers across the country to dismantle the school-to-deportation pipeline and protect vulnerable students. 

Letter in Support of ALL Students Please send this letter to the principal of your child’s school, local superintendent, or school board, urging them to affirm their commitment to ALL students and to ensure schools are safe and welcoming. 

Know Your Rights: 

• Know Your Rights: Know Your Rights: Standing Together Against Fear and Cruelty | MomsRising 

• School-to-Deportation Factsheet:  The School-to-Prison-to-Deportation Pipeline 

What to do if you’re face to face with ICE: 

• Preparing for ICE Raids: A Guide for School & Community Partnerships 

• Guidance on Immigration Issues: Guidance on Immigration Issues | NEA 

Important things to know about immigration policy: 

• FACT SHEET:  Fact Sheet: Educational Services for Immigrant Children and Those Recently Arrived to the United States 

• History of Pyler vs Doe: Undocumented Students Have the Right to a Free Education. This Is Why

• Prohibitions on Federal Interference with Curriculum: https://civilrights.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ProhibitionsFederalInterferenceCurriculum.pdf 

• School-to-Deportation Pipeline Background:  Caught in an Educational Dragnet: How the School-to-Deportation Pipeline Harms Immigrant Youth and Youth of Color - NILC