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Somerville schools won’t let ICE in without a warrant, superintendent tells families
Massachusetts public school districts are sending messages to parents this week informing them of the protections children have regardless of immigration status.
Massachusetts public school districts are sending messages to parents and guardians this week informing them of the protections that students have regardless of immigration status.
Somerville Public Schools sent an email Thursday afternoon to families saying that the district will not inquire about a family’s immigration status, coordinate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, share student records with ICE without a paren/guardian consent or a court order, or allow ICE access to its facilities without a warrant.
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“At Somerville Public Schools, we are deeply committed to supporting all of our immigrant students and families,” Superintendent Rubén Carmona wrote in an email to parents. “This commitment is rooted in our longstanding belief that every child has the right to access high-quality education in an inclusive and safe environment, regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or immigration status.”
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Carmona also noted that staff have been trained on ways to uphold students’ rights and best practices for interacting with ICE agents.
The uptick in these messages stem from President Donald Trump’s recent action to throw out a policy that classifies schools, churches, and hospitals as sensitive locations for migrant arrests, signaling the administration’s intention for mass deportations.
ICE issued guidance on these sensitive locations in 2011, followed shortly by Customs and Border Protection who instated similar guidelines in 2013.
Somerville Public Schools serves 4,952 students across 11 schools from Kindergarten through 12th grade, according to the 2024-25 enrollment data from the Department of Education. Of those students, 40% identified as Hispanic or Latino, the largest ethnic group in the district. Over 52% of students do not speak English as a first language.
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Worcester Public Schools also sent an email to parents Tuesday, expressing similar plans as Somerville Public Schools including assuring that students will only be dismissed by those authorized by parents or guardians.
Somerville and Worcester join Brockton, Medford, and Everett school districts in sending similar messages to families, according to The Boston Globe.
In a message to families earlier this week, Medford Interim Superintendent Suzanne Galusi shared the district’s policies concerning federal immigration. They include not requesting immigration status as part of registration and dismissing students only to parents and approved caregivers.
“The well-being of our students is paramount to the functioning of the Medford Public Schools, and we are committed to protecting their rights and safety,” according to the message.
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