DSEA released the following statement the day after Red Clay School District officials reported an ICE agent entered the campus of Stanton Middle School before apprehending a man in front of the school:
"Federal immigration enforcement actions on school grounds are unnecessary, unwarranted, and incredibly disruptive to student learning.
These incidents impact more than one child or one family.
They are harmful to entire school communities. They spread new waves of fear to schools across our state. And they often lead many law-abiding Delaware families to keep their children home from school out of concern for their safety.
That’s why our union has worked hard to make sure our schools are prepared for the exact situation that played out at Stanton Middle School on Tuesday morning.
In partnership with the Attorney General Kathy Jennings and the Delaware Department of Education, our union made sure educators have solid legal guidance about what to do if ICE shows up at their schools. We successfully urged state lawmakers to pass legislation that prevents local police agencies from helping ICE conduct immigration enforcement at our schools. And we worked with the ACLU of
Delaware to make sure every superintendent across the state understood how that measure – signed into law by Governor Matt Meyer in September – affects immigration enforcement at our schools.
We are deeply grateful to Stanton Middle and the Red Clay Schools for handling this incident appropriately.
And we encourage educators, parents and community members to continue working together with DSEA and our partners to ensure Delaware’s schools remain places of learning and security for every child."
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