California school board members slam 'fearmongering' over ICE driving down student attendance
California school board members believe there is a lot of "fearmongering" happening over immigration enforcement as teachers unions and school districts across the state are scolding U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
"There's really no reason for federal law enforcement to come to a school," Paso Robles Unified School District Trustee Kenney Enney told Fox News Digital. "I can't really think of a scenario where that would happen. Maybe if they were coming to try to get the parent while the parent was picking up the kid. I haven't heard of that happening anywhere. Most of it is fearmongering."
Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said earlier this year that students were not showing up to class in the second semester of the 2025-2026 school year due to concerns over immigration enforcement.
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Truancy is a "detriment" to the school district, Enney said, "because if they're fearmongering to a point … it is causing kids to stay home. California is one of seven states in the country whose school revenue is based on daily attendance.
"If they're inciting fears to the point where they're causing an increase in absenteeism, they're hurting themselves."
Sonja Shaw, a school board member at Chino Valley Unified School District, said ICE is not entering schools.
"To be perfectly clear, ICE is not entering schools or conducting enforcement actions on campuses. Claims suggesting otherwise are misinformation. We remain focused on providing a safe place for every student to learn and grow. Politics won't change that," Shaw told Fox News Digital.
"Our priority is ensuring every child feels secure enough to attend, grow and succeed. We continue monitoring attendance closely and supporting families as always."
Responding to fearmongering claims from school board members, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Fox News Digital it has not entered schools to arrest children.
"As we have repeatedly stated, DHS does not go to schools to arrest children. If a dangerous or violent criminal illegal alien felon were to flee into a school (as we have seen before) or a child sex offender is working as an employee, there may be a situation where an arrest is made to protect the safety of students," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.
DHS in September last year issued a statement affirming that ICE was not raiding schools.
"After media force-feeding the public stories about parents and children being scared to return to school, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is setting the record straight: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) does NOT raid or target schools," the department stated.
The Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration and ramping up deportation efforts have caused some schools to take action.
Oceanside Unified School District beefed up security and provided scripts for staff to "keep ICE out of schools." Visitors must be buzzed in to enter the front office. Front office signs were updated, and signs were put up to identify areas restricted to students and staff.
"OUSD is following updated state laws on this topic, though practices on law enforcement on campus have been part of our board policy since before 2020," a spokesperson said.
Districts across the state are expected to update state guidance by March 1 to ensure students are shielded from immigration enforcement. California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced last month that "approximately 133,000 undocumented children attend California’s public K-12 schools, and many more have parents or relatives who do not have legal status."
"This is all about fear," Lakeside Unified School District Trustee Andrew Hayes told Fox News Digital.
"It's all about the 2026 midterm, really. That's what it's about, is to try to instill fear so that as enrollment goes down, school districts can go and beg for more money from the state. These are all people who overspend–under-deliver. It's about creating lower enrollment so that they can go get more money," he said.
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Jen Wiersma, a school board member at Temecula Valley Unified School District, told Fox News Digital that fearmongering comes from certain districts, not all.
"California Teachers Association will grasp onto incendiary language and stoke fear and send out mixed messaging because, obviously, they're in support of more leftist policies and that would be something they give voice to more often than not," she said.
The California Teachers Association joined other school districts in slamming ICE, claiming in a Facebook post that "ICE agents have raided schools, used tear gas on students, and created a climate of fear that's keeping kids out of classrooms."
Responding to claims of fearmongering, LAUSD told Fox News Digital it is "committed to providing accurate information" and "recognize(s) that many families are experiencing real anxiety during periods of heightened immigration enforcement activity."
The California Teachers Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment.