Morality of the Draft See page 5
No Ban: Unite 4 people see page 6-7
Monthly Spotlight: Marc Anthony See Page 9
Fremont High School
the
by Maggie Bernauer & Emily Wright
collabaration
“All children in the United States are entitled to equal access to a public education, regardless of their or their parents’ actual or perceived national origin, citizenship, or immigration status.” This begins the Fremont Union High School District Resolution #161712, a policy adopted by the FUHSD Board of Trustees at their meeting on Feb. 7, 2017. This new policy protects all students, regardless of documentation status, relating to the detection and arrest of undocumented students and families using district resources, unless required by law. District employees and volunteers are not allowed nor required to release information regarding a student’s documentation. However, with a warrant, police can access such information. “Resolutions are important documents designed to let the community know
how we feel about certain issues,” Assistant Superintendent Tom Avvakumovits said. “But the real teeth of the actions is in the board policy and administrative regulation. And the administrative regulation in particular is the document explains how we manage student records. And there
PHOENIX
Vol. 5 Issue No. 5 march 10, 2017
IMMIGRATION NATION
are times we do have to give student records over if there is a compelling legal reason, but nowhere in that administrative regulation does it say we have to turn over student records to [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement(I.C.E.)] agents.” With the political rhetoric that has been going on the past few months, the district found this an appropriate time to take action. In particular, President Donald Trump has directed his administration to enforce immigration laws more aggressively, leading to fear and unrest among immigrant communities, according to The New York Times. “We wanted to come up with a document that stands the test of time, even when the political rhetoric of today is different,” Avvakumovits said. “We don’t want to make a resolution or board policy that is only valid as long as the president is saying these kind of things.” The policy has been a long time in the works.
schools in the district and there are other teachers at some other sites who really took this on,” Lowell said. Lowell had previously written and circulated a rough draft of his letter to the board. By gathering signatures and working with other faculty members like Riccardo Agredano, Dan McCune, Wynn Nojopranato and Anastasia Zamkinos, Lowell worked within the community and was finally able to make this resolution possible. Lowell also said that another teacher at Monta Vista High School, Bonnie Belshie, simultaneously wrote a resolution similar to his on behalf of the teacher’s union. “It was really helpful to hear from students themselves, both documented and undocumented, about what they wanted to hear the school say and what their families wanted to hear the school say because I think that made it a much stronger and more inclusive message then it would have been otherwise,” Lowell said.
Ben Lowell, a FHS science teacher, started the process when he read a letter on the behalf of staff and faculty members across the district urging the implementation of such a policy at a board meeting in December. “We started at Fremont, but we also, through the teacher’s union, spread this information to other
In particular, Lowell worked closely with Latino Student Union member Ana Vasquez to craft the message to the board. “I want them to know that even though they are undocumented the district doesn’t take that into account when they are protecting our students,” Senior Ana Vasquez said.
“They see them just the same as everyone else. You are welcome here!” Lowell says he was motivated to send the message because of the rhetoric involved in the 2016 election. “I found myself thinking a lot about my AVID students who graduated last year, a number of whom are currently undocumented and I thought about what it means for them and also the students that I have now,” Lowell said. “I think that it’s important that as an institution whose main job is educating students, that we stand up to protect all of the students and make sure that fami-
AP
The court found that the Texas education reform law that spurred the case was “directed against children, and impose[d] its discriminatory burden on the basis of a legal characteristic over which children can have little control.” “If you are going to offer a free public education you cannot say yes to one group and no to another group,” Avvakumovits said. “That [Plyer v. Doe] really reaffirmed that all kids whether documented or not have the right to a free public education.” Registering for public education at FHS
No ICE Allowed
lies and students know that we are adults who are here to protect them.” In the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court case Plyler v. Doe, it was ruled that under the Fourteenth Amendment, if a state provides free public education to citizens, it cannot deny such education to undocumented children as well.
does not require citizenship or immigration documentation, but rather proof of residency within FHS’s boundaries, according to Avvakumovits. The policy has been embraced by several school principals. However, it is likely that the policy will impact FHS the most due to the diversity of the school.
pR O
VE
D
“[It’s a] reinforcement of what we try to do already,” FHS Principal Brian Emmert said. “We want Fremont to continue to be an inclusive place that is open to all walks to life. When you are here, we are open and accepting . . . While the resolution particularly focuses on undocumented immigrants, I think it’s important to not narrow it to that [immigration] but to really make sure we are being inclusive.” This resolution is positive addition to the support that is already present for students at FHS. “We explain what different situations there are and what they [students] can do,” Student Liaison Jesus Ramirez said. “I have information for immigration lawyers or different organizations that work with people. And it doesn’t always have to be immigration, it could be refugee, or whatever, there are a lot of different aspects to immigration.” It is clear that the school is prioritizing their students’ safety and right to
free education. “Education is a basic human right that all people deserve to have and so we should make sure that we do everything in our power to allow every student in our district to receive that right,” Lowell said.
Miranda Kushner| The Phoenix Photo courtesy of Bob Vila and Homeland Security