LAUSD is taking action to help immigrant students feel safe going to school : NPR

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More than half a million students are headed back to the classroom in Los Angeles this week. But the mood is very different in the nation’s second largest school district, following a summer of intense federal immigration enforcement. Megan Jamerson from member station KCRW reports.

MEGAN JAMERSON, BYLINE: In January, the Department of Homeland Security changed its policies to allow enforcement actions in places like schools and churches. In a statement to NPR Friday, DHS said it expects enforcement actions at schools to be, quote, “extremely rare.” But the Los Angeles Unified School District is taking aggressive measures to keep immigrant families safe this year. At a press conference announcing the changes, Mayor Karen Bass called the moment profound.

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KAREN BASS: We are gathered here today to talk about protecting our children from the federal government.

JAMERSON: The district wants to prevent students and their parents from encountering immigration agents on their way to and from school. Almost three-quarters of its student body identifies as Hispanic or Latino. So the district expanded bus routes to pick up students closer to home. And at 100 schools, local police, school staff and volunteers are fanning out to form safe passage networks before and after class.

INGRID VILLEDA: Schools are supposed to be a safe space for students.

JAMERSON: Ingrid Villeda is an educator at an elementary school in south LA. Her school is taking extra steps to create an environment where students can feel safe and learn.

There have only been a few school-related incidents in LA. In April, federal agents tried to enter two elementary schools here to question students. And this week, a 15-year-old was briefly detained outside of a high school.

VILLEDA: We know that this administration doesn’t honor the sanctity of any safe space. You know, they’ve entered hospitals. They’ve entered churches. And so the school entity is the only one that’s left.

JAMERSON: The Department of Homeland Security blames the media and, quote, “sanctuary politicians” for any climate of fear and said that it is protecting schools by preventing criminal aliens and gang members from exploiting these locations.

As Villeda started to prepare for school, she got concerned about all the families who walk their kids to campus.

VILLEDA: I was brainstorming, how do we solve that issue? And the best way was for us to go get them.

JAMERSON: She calls it a walking school bus. Staff at her school will go into the neighborhood and will pick up students from their homes and escort them to campus.

VILLEDA: We know how scared people are. We’re scared, too, but we’re going to show up (crying).

JAMERSON: And she wants parents to know, she stands with them and will protect their kids.

For NPR News, I’m Megan Jamerson in Los Angeles.

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