CHOOSE HOPE OVER FEAR

I am the leader of the second largest public school system in the country. I am also a proud American—and once, I was an undocumented immigrant. My journey to citizenship is an experience that deeply informs how I lead, how I teach, and how I serve the over 520,000 students who attend Los Angeles Unified schools. This country gave me the opportunity to learn, to grow, and to give back.

- BY ALBERTO M. CARVALHO

The week of June 9, I cheered as our youngest students crossed their first academic finish lines. The kindergartners beamed with pride, and hugged the teachers who had helped them grow. In those moments, I saw the future: bright, diverse, and full of possibility. But in the same week, I also stood beside families gripped with fear. Some of them have lived in our city for decades. Some arrived more recently, escaping violence, persecution, and poverty. All have entrusted their children to our care. And now, many are facing the unimaginable.

In recent months, the federal government has sent immigration agents into our communities—sometimes near or directly to schools. They have questioned parents and, in some cases, spoken with students. Federal immigration agents have driven through neighborhoods in tactical gear and set up checkpoints outside workplaces. In June, the National Guard was deployed to Los Angeles, then the Marines.