Absent for ICE: Trump immigration enforcement hits school attendance |
President Trump's immigration crackdown is exacerbating the already precarious problem of absenteeism in America's schools.
Experts say schools will have to come up with action plans for their students ahead of the fall semester after a recent study showed an increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids leads to students who lack certain documentation missing more class.
“What we've really seen and been told is that communication is really key, and so a district can be really explicit with families to understand the fear that they have and then explain all of the protections and protocols that the district have in place to prevent students from being detained at school or for their data to be protected,” said Tara Thomas, government affairs manager for the Schools Superintendents Association.
Research recently released from Stanford University found a 22 percent jump in absences from five California school districts during January and February, compared to the same months in the previous years.
The difference, analysts say, was ICE raids carried out under former President Biden and Trump during the first two months of the........