Nearly half of all Americans, including many educators, are still working through their feelings about former President Donald Trump鈥檚 victory this week. This is particularly the case for those of us who work with immigrant students in our nation鈥檚 public schools.
Here are some suggestions for how teachers, schools, and their leaders can move some of those feelings to action:
Support Students
In theory, no one working in schools should challenge the idea of providing support to our students.
However, as the saying goes, 鈥淭he devil is in the details.鈥�
has documented the t on mental health and academic achievement that occurs when students are concerned that a family member (or they themselves) might be in danger of being deported.
President-elect Trump has declared he will of people who might not have the necessary documents to remain in the United States legally and has threatened to of other immigrants. Given his intentions, what are schools鈥� plans to provide the additional mental health and academic support so many of our students will need? In California alone, are estimated to have at least one undocumented parent, while are in that situation nationally. Many more have other family members in similar jeopardy. Are counselors being trained to provide care to young people facing these fears? Are schools working with local legal professionals to offer free to them/their families and (ideally) representation?
Trump and his supporters have other plans for these students, including challenges to laws that require public schools , regardless of immigration status. If that happens, and undocumented children are either banned from public schools or required to pay tuition, can educators and school leaders ethically stand by in the face of these efforts to deny schooling to residents of their community? Are school staff members in discussions with public officials to clarify how the denial of schooling to some children makes the community worse for everyone鈥攃hildren are on the streets, unsupervised; they鈥檙e not gaining the skills that lead to employment to improve neighborhood economic stability, etc.?
There are now restrictions on the actions U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can take at schools. How will schools respond if those are loosened to allow ICE officers to seize parents or guardians dropping off or picking up their children? Or, even worse, if ICE officers demand to enter classrooms to seize students? Are school leaders providing training to classified staff and educators so they know what actions they can legally take in those situations? Are school administrators in conversation with local law enforcement and attorneys to develop a legally and morally responsible protocol for dealing with these situations?
In the face of this polarization around immigrants, how are school leaders planning to ensure this animosity does not spill over to their student bodies? For example, our school organizes an in which our immigrant students share essays and presentations about their personal stories to students in English-proficient classrooms, who then respond in a structured process. These kinds of group and individual conversations can result in new relationships and greater understanding of the reasons, risks, and struggles involved in why immigrants are starting a new life in the United States. This kind of activity may reduce the odds of student conflict and, instead, help build a greater sense of community.
The Trump campaign鈥檚 focus on the transgender community is not going to make it any easier for students who identify as transgender, nonbinary, or LGBTQ+, either. How are schools going to respond if those students are bullied or, even better, be proactive before the bullying starts? Will training be provided to teachers on support in such areas as the use of language and curriculum that is inclusive of all students?
Support Teachers
Teachers are going to have their hands full with the actual extra work involved in supporting students and the emotional toll it will take on us.
What can schools remove from teachers鈥� plates immediately? What can they do to make our jobs a little bit easier? An ongoing Ed Week series in my Ed Week blog offers some suggestions, including respecting and retaining prep time, reducing the number of meetings, and minimizing classroom interruptions.
Support Communities
Historically, schools have been 鈥渕ediating institutions鈥� in and for their communities. These institutions 鈥渕ediate鈥� between individuals with little power and government or other larger entities such as large corporations. Schools and other organizations can perform this function by bringing these individuals together to organize for their needs and beliefs. Edmund Burke called these groups 鈥渓ittle platoons鈥�; Alexis de Tocqueville described them as 鈥渁ssociations鈥�; and coined the term 鈥渕ediating structures.鈥�
Any time is a good time for educators and school leaders to reflect on how they feel about this role, but this election makes it particularly timely for schools to thoughtfully consider how they can serve as mediating institutions and ask themselves questions like:
- Given the that schools, within their campuses, can only directly impact 30 percent or so of the factors affecting student achievement, should they consider what they can learn from actions schools have taken historically to influence outside factors? Examples include the of the civil rights movement and the of today鈥檚 movement. There are also many examples of schools working with their neighborhoods to improve traffic safety, industries, or implement policies by school boards to with ICE. The community/school partnerships developed in the led by the Industrial Areas Foundation in Texas are another example of this kind of 鈥渕ediating institution鈥� work. (I worked as an organizer for the IAF for many years prior to becoming a teacher.)
- If one of the responsibilities of schools is to prepare students to be active participants in a democracy, what should that look like today? Is it a matter of just teaching concepts like the separation of powers and the number of congresspeople in the House of Representatives, or should it be to develop who grapple with the problems facing their community and engage with others to solve them?
It appears that we may be in a period of monumental change. During this time, will schools choose to be bystanders or will they decide to be
