The AP (5/7, Armario) reports on the letter sent last Friday from ED OCR and the Department of Justice to districts across the US "reminding them that all students - legal or not - are entitled to a public education. The letter comes amid reports that schools may be checking the immigration status of students trying to enroll, and reminds districts they are federally prohibited from barring elementary or secondary students on the basis of citizenship status." The letter adds that districts are barred from seeking immigration status information in an attempt to deny service. The piece quotes ED's Justin Hamilton, "We put this letter out now because we know school districts are in the process of planning for the next school year, and wanted to make sure they had this in hand."
Education Week (5/10, Walsh) reports that the "administration is reminding school administrators nationwide of their obligation under federal law to enroll children regardless of citizenship or immigration status," citing "cites Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin, among other factors, by public schools. It also cites Plyler v. Doe, the 1982 decision by the US Supreme Court that held a state may not deny access to a basic public education to any child, whether that child is present in the country legally or not." The piece notes that ED's Russlyn Ali and Charles P. Rose are signatories. "The Education and Justice departments stress in a fact sheet and a question-and-answer document that schools may require proof that a child lives within school district boundaries...but schools may not ask parents about a child's immigration status to establish residency."
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