Port Washington parents braved the cold last week to express their concerns to Board of Education trustees and school administrators about what they believe is a pressing district issue.
Were these concerns about reading scores? Or graduation rates? Or upcoming budget proposals?
No, on this occasion, education took a back seat to questions of district policies amid threats of federal immigration raids and deportations. Parents were afraid, fearing that federal immigration agents would conduct raids at their children’s schools.
We can only assume that these fears have been passed on to students. This is hardly an environment conducive to learning.
Sadly, the concerns expressed by Port Washington parents – and those across Nassau County – were not misplaced.
President Trump has said he would like to deport all 14 million undocumented people estimated to be living in the United States and has issued more than a dozen executive orders to make that happen.
This includes revoking the 2011 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement “sensitive locations” policy, which restricts enforcement actions at places like schools, churches and hospitals.
This would allow ICE agents to conduct arrests at Nassau County schools without prior approval.
State data shows that in the 2023-24 school year, 22% of Port Washington’s students were Latino and 9% of its students were designated as English as a New Language learners. These are students who do not speak English or English is not their first language, which means they require additional language services.
Port Washington’s Latino population is actually below the Nassau County average of 29%. Some districts are well above that, with Hempstead at 77%, Westbury at 76% and Glen Cove at 67%.
The majority of people in the United States without documentation are believed to have overstayed their visas rather than entering the country without authorization. According to estimates by organizations such as the Center for Migration Studies and the Department of Homeland Security, approximately 50%-60% of individuals in the U.S. unlawfully are visa overstayers.
This includes many people from Asia, Africa and Europe.
But the Trump administration has made it clear that its focus is on the undocumented people here who have crossed the southern border with Mexico and those with criminal records.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency known as ICE, charged with handling much of President Trump’s immigration crackdown, said it had arrested 7,400 people in the first nine days of the new administration, significantly increasing enforcement over last year.
But details of those arrests have been scarce, leaving it unclear whether the criminals being targeted make up a significant share of those being captured.
The Trump administration has also said it will focus its deportations on large cities like Chicago and New York, aiming to enforce federal immigration laws in jurisdictions that have previously limited cooperation with immigration authorities.
For the moment, this seems to exclude Nassau, where County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a political ally of Trump, has consistently stated that Nassau is not a sanctuary county and will not extend protections to immigrants.
But Nassau parents and students have no guarantees.
New York State officials issued a nine-page guidance just days before Trump took office, advising on how schools can protect the rights of immigrant students, documented and undocumented.
It is not clear what impact an executive order declaring a national emergency at the southern border would have on the safeguards presented in the document. The state should immediately update its advisory to school districts.
Port Washington’s acting superintendent, Christopher Shields, told parents at last week’s meeting that he had spoken directly to the district’s staff on how to handle raids by immigration agents and that the district had protocols in place for staff to follow.
But he said he could not divulge details because it might jeopardize students’ security. Instead, he offered assurances that the district had explored the “fine details” of district immigration policies.
Board of Education President Adam Smith said further answers would have to wait until the board’s next meeting and the district’s legal team has already been investigating the district’s options
That is not good enough. The Port Washington school board meeting shows that parents and teachers are already living in fear. As has been reported in other places in the country, this may already be affecting school attendance.
We understand that school officials are facing an unprecedented situation that is not of their making.
But parents, students and all those on school grounds need answers. Now.
