School Committee considering ICE policy

The School Committee is considering a policy that would firm up the district’s procedures relating to state and federal immigration enforcement activity.

The new policy comes several months after resident Robert Gill at the Feb. 3 School Committee meeting expressed concern about the increasing presence of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity in Greater Boston. While the School Committee did not have an official policy at that point, Superintendent Karen Zaleski said the district’s procedure was to notify her office, bring in the Weston Police Department and legal counsel, while prohibiting any outside individual’s entry into a school building without her approval.

School Committee members held a first read of the proposed policy on April 27, and are expected to vote on it in the coming weeks.

“The district has a fairly detailed protocol about access to students and student information,” said Daina Selvig. “This policy sets a sort of threshold, a framework, for what actions are permissible or impermissible on school property.”

If approved, the policy would direct the district to not provide any student information to federal immigration officers or agents unless they present a valid judicial warrant signed by a judge. The prohibition on sharing information includes, but is not limited to, confirming whether a student is enrolled in Weston Public Schools.

All requests from federal immigration authorities or other parties seeking access to student information will be referred to the superintendent.

The proposed policy also prohibits immigration officials from entering school buildings without approval, as they are a private space reserved for education and community purposes. If an immigration officer seeks to question or remove a student from a classroom or school, the district’s legal counsel will assess whether that request is supported by a valid judicial warrant and will notify the student’s parents/guardians.

All district-controlled environments, including buildings, school activities on and off campus, and school transportation are covered under the policy, and the superintendent may adopt additional procedures to support the policy.

The proposed policy mirrors guidance from the state attorney general’s office, which notes that state and federal law requires school districts enroll school-aged children who reside in the district without regard to immigration status.

While School Committee members are expected to vote on the policy in the coming weeks, they expressed their support of the proposal.

“I’m really thankful for the community members that brought this to our attention,” Jane Li said.