As you may know, it has been reported that federal immigration officers detained a City School District of Albany prekindergarten student in the community with their father last Friday morning. We are deeply saddened by these circumstances for this child and their family, and the renewal of this activity in our community.
While it has been many months since we last received reports of federal immigration officers detaining district students in the community, and there have been no cases of this type of activity on any of our school campuses, any instance of this type of activity is troubling. We once again are reminding our principals and administrators about their legal rights and responsibilities if law enforcement officials come to school seeking to question a student on district property. This includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
While our school district always will comply with the law, ICE officers and law enforcement officials from any agency are permitted to question a student on district property only under certain circumstances. If none of that criteria is met, law enforcement officers are not permitted to speak to a student on school property.
We have once again instructed our administrators on the appropriate steps to follow should these circumstances occur on school property. That includes denying law enforcement officials entry into the building if they lack the proper legal authorization.
This guidance from our legal team also aligns with guidance that the State Education Department has provided for all New York school districts. You can . This information is available in 14 languages, including Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, Urdu and more.
For additional information and resources, we invite you to read this message from earlier this school year.
As a school community, we remain committed to ensuring that our schools remain safe, supportive and welcoming environments for everyone. We will continue to value and defend every student, family and employee that our organization is so proud to serve.
Sincerely,
Joseph Hochreiter
Superintendent