Parents navigate back to school amid fears of ICE and federal crackdowns in Washington

Along with the excitement that accompanies the start of school, parents and schoolchildren in Washington, DC, have something new to contend with this year: how to navigate a federal law enforcement surge and immigration crackdown in the nation’s capital.

At one middle school, where many students are minorities, parents and teachers took extra precautions by walking their students back and forth from Union Station, the city’s busy train station, as National Guard members patrolled nearby.

The parents, who held signs identifying themselves as guardians and escorts for students, were approached by police and warned not to “loiter” on the first morning of school, one of the parents involved said.

Another mom, who volunteered to be part of the system, brings her passport with her while she’s with the students even though she’s a US citizen. She asked that her name not be used amid safety and privacy concerns, and is “terrified” of the kids getting profiled or caught up in an enforcement action.

“It’s hard,” she told CNN. “I was crying because I was just like it’s a risk to go and protect my daughter and her classmates, but it’s also necessary to protect them.”

Schools throughout Washington are finding creative protocols to combat fears – even among those here legally – that have infiltrated this back-to-school season amid reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents showing up at schools and a spike in arrests since the White House seized control of DC’s police force. In the two-week period beginning August 7, federal officials arrested over 300 people in D.C. for immigration status issues.

‘What is your ICE policy?’

Parents have been asking questions about going back to school, said Jeannine Piacenza, executive director of CommuniKids, a language immersion preschool in D.C. and Virginia.

“The normal things are, you know, do you serve organic fruits during snack time? How long do the students nap?” she said. “The unusual one was ‘What is your ICE policy?’”

The anxiety has extended to her staff, 90% of whom are immigrants, Piacenza said. Spanish-speaking staff feel fearful because they also worry about being profiled, she added.

As a precaution, CommuniKids has advised teachers to carry their passports at work. And the school has established protocols in case of an ICE visit, instructing staff to contact school leadership and the Metropolitan Police Department.

In addition, school officials spent months ensuring they had the proper paperwork to demonstrate the legal status of any immigrants on staff.

“I couldn’t imagine in a million years that we would have to carry our passports in the United States of America,” Piacenza said. “I never thought that I would see the National Guard patrolling a city that there are not riots going on, that there are, there is not unrest.”

One teacher said having her passport in her green cross-body bag at all times does give her some comfort.

“When I go outside, every time I go outside or wherever I go, always with me, yeah, always like, even in the bathroom. I just keep it with me all the time,” the teacher said.

Karla Marrero Santos, whose daughter attends CommuniKids, said she’s afraid of speaking Spanish when she goes out due to fear of being identified. She’s noticed Spanish speakers have been targeted and said she doesn’t know what would happen if she’s in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“I’m afraid of speaking my language, and I’m sticking to English, just to feel safe. Especially when I’m with my daughter outside. So, never ever thought in my life I would be in this position,” she said.

Santos said she believes in the benefits of children learning both English and Spanish in school, but she worries about the school being targeted.

Another mom with school-aged children, who asked her name not be used because of privacy concerns, said: “People are scared, even people who are documented.” She worries authorities “detain first” and “ask questions later.”

Extra safety measures

Other schools have also taken extra measures to ensure their students feel safe going back to school. One DC public charter school took money from their annual budget to fund a private bus for students to go back and forth from the metro, according to a school administrator working in public schools who did not want to be named as they were not authorized to speak on the issue.

The school is “really afraid” of the financial consequences of the decisions they’ve had to make, the administrator said, and this is not something they can sustain.

The school, whose students mostly come from Latino families, has also tightened its safety protocols, telling teachers to contact the head of the school if federal agents show up. The teachers have been instructed to tell agents that they cannot come on campus without a warrant signed by a judge.

The school has also asked teachers to station themselves all around the block around the school, not just on campus, to “just show presence and reassure” students who are worried, the administrator added.

During a DC Public Schools information session before the first day of school, district officials advised parents about law enforcement’s presence and addressed the federal takeover.

“Any law enforcement action on school grounds can only take place with a valid warrant or court order. If members of law enforcement come to a school, administrators are clear about what to do next,” Lewis Ferebee, the district chancellor, told parents during the session.

The school district serves over 52,000 students, of which 16% identified as English-language learners in the 2024-2025 school year. English-language learning students often come from immigrant backgrounds or are foreign-born.

Umberto Villalon, who has children in both CommuniKids and at a DC public school, has been living with his family in the city for 17 years. While Villalon has tried to focus on his family and kids, he said the current atmosphere is stressful.

“A few years before, it was a very happy environment to grow a family. So we are looking for that to get into a normal stage, back into the city,” Villalon said.

He said he doesn’t want to concern his kids because they are very small but wants them to be “aware of the situation that everyone is a human being and everyone needs to be loved.”

Santos keeps her phone by her while working in case she gets a call from her daughter’s preschool. It’s not easy for parents to maintain a safe space for their kid while helping them thrive, she said.

“You go out the streets and you’re keeping your eyes around, just making sure you know that everything’s safe.”