Conservatives Want to Deny Migrant Children Right to Education

01For 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.

02The justices said it is unconstitutional to deny children an education based on their immigration status.

03But conservative politicians in states such as Oklahoma, Texas, and Tennessee are now questioning that right.

04They also raise the possibility of challenging the decision known as Plyer v.

05Doe.

06The Supreme Court's conservative majority has already overturned previous decisions on abortion rights and the use of race for admissions in higher education.

07Supporters of the 1982 decision fear it could become a national issue if former President Donald Trump wins a second term in the White House.

08Trump has made immigration a central part of his 2024 presidential campaign.

09He promises to carry out the largest operation in history to expel immigrants from the country if elected.

10The debate over welcoming immigrant children into public schools has also reached the small town of Saugus near Boston, Massachusetts.

11At a recent meeting, the Saugus Public Schools Committee approved a new admissions policy.

12The policy requires new students to share immigration records.

13Families must sign a residency statement and provide housing and identity documents.

14It said the purpose was to simplify the process of registering students.

15But some are criticizing the policy's requirement for proof of legal residency and the threat of criminal and civil punishment for violators.

16They say it has another goal, keeping immigrants out of the small town's schools.

17Civil rights lawyers say the Saugus requirements are too difficult for all to complete and violate federal law.

18They say it unfairly harms students from immigrant families.

19They say even those living in the country legally may lack many of the required documents.

20Vincent Serrino is head of the Saugus School Committee.

21He said during the August meeting that the policy is tightening up of existing residency rules and is not intended to keep out immigrants.

22But a Nicaraguan woman told the Associated Press that it took six months to register her eight-year-old child because of the document requirements.

23The woman said the town would not accept her housing papers and the school did not answer when she spoke about the problems.

24In Saugus, the number of students who learn English has grown to 31% over the last 10 years.

25In 2021, the national average for English learners in public schools was 10%, with the highest being Texas schools at 20%.

26The increase in the number of immigrants in public schools makes it necessary to make changes in order to serve larger numbers of English learners.

27But until recently, educators and officials would not have accepted the idea of denying children an education.

28Tom K.

29Wong is director of the U.S.

30Immigration Policy Center at the University of California, San Diego.

31He said that now such ideas are becoming accepted in certain political circles.

32Earlier 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.

33Over 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.

34Several school systems have pushed back, saying they will not check students' immigration status.

35Chris Payne is a spokesperson for Union Public Schools in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

36He said federal law bans schools from asking students or their families about their immigration status or to request documentation of their citizenship.

37Attempts to limit children of immigrants in public schools have also failed in the states of Tennessee and Texas so far.

38Back in Massachusetts, legal experts say the policy has been a problem for at least two immigrant families trying to register children in Saugus schools.

39And it took their involvement to get the students into the school.

40The policy itself is illegal, said Oren Selstrom of Lawyers for Civil Rights.

41Schools should be welcoming all children who are in the district and educating them.

42I'm Jill Robbins.