We Are One Campaign
Last week all principals in LAUSD attended a webinar in which we learned what to do if ICE or some other federal agents come to the school to detain a student. Our school is a safe places for children and I am committed to following District policy and state law, which protects the rights of ALL children to receive a free, public education without hindrance or discrimination. We as a school never share or even ask about a student or family's immigration status. If ICE agents were to come to our school these are the procedures that must be followed: (1) The agent must show an official badge and present a court order or warrant for the person's arrest. (2) We do not disclose if the child attends our school or if he/she is even present on campus that day. We never give this information to anyone anyway without proper authorization (i.e DCFS or LAPD). (3) We take a picture of the agent's badge and the warrant, (4) we immediately call the head of School Operations and Los Angeles Unified School Police and send the pictures to them for verification. Meanwhile, we wait for directions from LAUSD headquarters. I would not permit anyone to come on campus and take a child into custody without authorization from LAUSD that I have no other recourse but to comply with the court order. (5) While we wait for instructions from LAUSD Operations, we would immediately and discretely call the parent(s)/caregiver to alert you to the situation. LAUSD has put together a very informative website for parents to know their rights and to have a plan in place in case a family member faces deportation orders. I have also trained Coach Jackie, all teachers, and the office staff on these procedures in my absence. In addition, on 2/6 I will be posting a We Are One pre-recorded webinar link on our school's website for parents to view with anonymity.
