ICE raids sow 'climate of distress' in schools

A drop in attendance has been verified by other researchers who collected data from California's Central Valley and the Northeastern states.

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There's also been a decline in K-12 enrollment that appears to number in at least the tens of thousands, affecting cities including Los Angeles, San Diego and Miami, based on figures provided by school district officials.

Principals, including in Minnesota, Nebraska and Michigan, noticed an uptick in students using hostile and derogatory language toward classmates from immigrant families. Some said a political climate that has normalized attacks on immigrants was to blame.

The vast majority of principals surveyed, nearly 78%, said their campuses created plans to respond to visits from federal agents and nearly half have a contingency plan for when a student's parents are deported.

In this effort, schools in Los Angeles County have been leaders, taking quick and unprecedented steps to protect and reassure families. The L.A. Unified School District, for example, has provided direct home-to-school transportation for some students.

Their fears are not without cause.

In April, Los Angeles principals turned away immigration agents who tried to enter two elementary schools, claiming to be conducting a wellness check with family permission. School district officials said no such permission had been granted.

At a public meeting in November, L.A. school board member Karla Griego reported that a parent was taken into custody on his way to a school meeting about an updated education plan to manage his child's disabilities.