Austin ISD says it is prepared for potential impact of Trump’s immigration policies

Officials for the largest school district in Central Texas said they have taken steps to prepare for the potential impact of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. Austin ISD General Counsel Kenneth M. Walker II said the district began reviewing its protocols before Trump began signing executive orders.

“We could … anticipate that some of the deportation efforts that the Trump administration talked about, that has now come up in executive orders, would create fear in our communities and create uncertainty,” he said.

The Trump administration implemented a new policy last week that allows immigration authorities to enter schools, houses of worship and health care facilities to detain people who are undocumented. That’s a shift from the Biden administration, which deemed schools to be areas protected from immigration enforcement actions to ensure people weren’t discouraged from accessing essential services.

Walker emphasized that Austin ISD does not collect immigration documentation, so it does not have that information to share with federal authorities. He also underscored the fact that all children have a right to an education regardless of immigration status.

“No child’s education in Austin ISD, in any school for that matter in this country, is contingent upon their immigration status,” he said.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1982 that children could not be denied access to public education because of their immigration status. That landmark decision came in response to Plyler v. Doe, which challenged a Texas law that aimed to prevent state funding from being used to educate undocumented children.

Walker said Austin ISD has prepared for a variety of scenarios. He said, for example, the district does have protocols in place if immigration authorities show up to a school.

“In order for them to perform any law enforcement action, they have to have legal authority to do so. So, we want to vet whatever documentation they have in support of what they’re looking to carry out on a campus,” he said. “We also want to vet their identification – that they are who they say they are.”

Austin ISD has directed campus staff to collect this information and then share it with the general counsel’s office. Walker said his office is prepared to review those documents.

“Once that review has taken place, then we’ll get back with the school official and let them know whether or not the law enforcement officer is actually permitted to carry out that particular action,” he said.

If that action is permitted, Walker said the district’s priority is to minimize the impact to students.

Walker said Austin ISD also has plans in place for what to do if a student’s parent or legal guardian is detained by immigration authorities.

“We want to carry out the delivery of instruction and be able to look after the safety and well-being of all of our students,” he said, “but nonetheless we have developed a response or protocol to address that unfortunate circumstance.”

Walker said Austin ISD will do everything it can to contact that parent or guardian. Then the district will reach out to the emergency contacts it has on file, which the district has asked all families to update.

“We’re going to exhaust every effort that we can to identify the appropriate person designated by a parent or guardian to take custody of the child,” he said.

Walker said the district’s preparations for the impact of new immigration policies has also included working with school counselors so they can provide services and support to students.

While Austin ISD officials, including Superintendent Matias Segura, have said the district is committed to providing a safe and supportive learning environment for all students, Walker said he knows there is still fear. But, he added, the district is going to continue to monitor federal immigration policies and their potential impact on the Austin ISD community.

“There is a network of school districts that are communicating and trying to understand what is happening and where,” he said. “We are also continuously thinking of new scenarios to respond to.”

As KUT previously reported, immigration advocates have said just because the Trump administration has issued new policies, does not mean immigration authorities are going to start showing up on school campuses.

Other local school districts are reassuring their communities that they remain welcoming environments for all students. Del Valle ISD said it remains a “safe” and “inclusive” district.

“The district will continue to focus on providing all students with a safe environment where they can thrive academically and emotionally,” Christopher Weddle, Del Valle ISD’s executive director of communications, said in an email to KUT.

Manor ISD has instructed staff to use the same protocols with immigration authorities as they would with any other law enforcement agency.

This story was produced as part of the Austin Monitor’s reporting partnership with KUT.

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