Conservatives Want to Deny Migrant Children Right to Education

For many years, children of families living in the United States illegally have had the right to attend public school based on a 1982 Supreme Court decision.

The justices said it is unconstitutional to deny children an education based on their immigration status.

But conservative politicians in states such as Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee are now questioning that right. They also raise the possibility of challenging the decision known as Plyler v. Doe. The Supreme Court's conservative majority has already overturned previous decisions on abortion rights and the use of race for admissions in higher education.

Supporters of the 1982 decision fear it could become a national issue if former President Donald Trump wins a second term in the White House. Trump has made immigration a central part of his 2024 presidential campaign. He promises to carry out the largest operation in history to expel immigrants from the country if elected.

Difficult requirements

The debate over welcoming immigrant children into public schools has also reached the small town of Saugus, near Boston, Massachusetts.

At a recent meeting, the Saugus Public Schools Committee approved a new admissions policy. The policy requires new students to share immigration records. Families must sign a residency statement and provide housing and identity documents. It said the purpose was to simplify the process of registering students.

But, some are criticizing the policy's requirement for proof of "legal" residency and the threat of “criminal and civil” punishment for violators. They say it has another goal: keeping immigrants out of the small town's schools.

Civil rights lawyers say the Saugus requirements are too difficult for all to complete and violate federal law. They say the requirements unfairly harm students from immigrant families. They say even those living in the country legally may lack many of the required documents.

Vincent Serino is head of the Saugus school committee. He said during the August meeting that the policy is "tightening up" of existing residency rules and is not intended to keep out immigrants.

But a Nicaraguan woman told the Associated Press that it took six months to register her 8-year-old child because of the document requirements. The woman said the town would not accept her housing papers and the school did not answer when she spoke about the problems.

Possibility of changes ahead

In Saugus, the number of students who learn English has grown to 31 percent over the last ten years. In 2021, the national average for English learners in public schools was 10 percent, with the highest being Texas schools at 20 percent.

The increase in the number of immigrants in public schools makes it necessary to make changes in order to serve larger numbers of English learners.

But until recently, educators and officials would not have accepted the idea of denying children an education. Tom K. Wong is director of the U.S. immigration Policy Center at the University of California, San Diego. He said that now such ideas are becoming accepted in certain political circles.

Earlier this year, the conservative Heritage Foundation urged states to pass laws requiring public schools to ask families living in the country illegally to pay for their children to attend.

Over the summer, Ryan Walters, head of Oklahoma's State Department of Education, said his agency would ask schools to collect information on the cost of illegal immigration. Several school systems have pushed back, saying they will not check students' immigration status.

Chris Payne is a spokesperson for Union Public Schools in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He said federal law bans schools “from asking students or their families about their immigration status or to request documentation of their citizenship."

Attempts to limit children of immigrants in public schools have also failed in the states of Tennessee and Texas so far.

Back in Massachusetts, legal experts say the policy has been a problem for at least two immigrant families trying to register children in Saugus schools. And it took their involvement to get the students into the school.

"The policy itself is illegal," said Oren Sellstrom of Lawyers for Civil Rights. "Schools should be welcoming (all) children who are in the district and educating them."

I'm Jill Robbins.

Michael Casey and Jocelyn Gecker reported this story for the Associated Press. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English.

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status – n. the official position of a person or thing according to the law

challenge – v. to say or show that (something) may not be true, correct, or legal

residency – n. the state or fact of living in a place