Border schools get tough on Mexican students

May. 22, 2008 03:26 PM

Christian Science Monitor

CALEXICO and SAN DIEGO - If you cross the U.S.-Mexican border at the town of Calexico you might run into a photographer named Daniel Santillan. But he's not likely to be shooting pictures of tourists. He only has eyes for Mexican schoolchildren who want an American education.

Santillan is a residency enforcer, assigned by local education officials to make sure students live in the U.S., not Mexico. When he's not tracking students on weekday mornings at the border crossing, he visits local homes to make sure children live where their parents say they do.

Santillan isn't thrilled about busting youngsters for living south of the border, but he accepts his job. "The bottom line is that these kids are taking up room," he says.

It's impossible to know how many Mexican students cross the border daily to attend school in the U.S., sent by parents who think they'll get a better education. Still, border communities have fretted over their presence for more than a decade.

Some schools are now doing more to enforce residency requirements under pressure from politicians and activists concerned about wasted taxpayer money.

Calexico's schools, however, have gone further than others by sending Santillan to photograph students at the border and requiring parents to provide proof of residency twice a year.

Illegal immigrant opponents say Va. losing untold money through education

From NBC12 News

Supporters of illegal immigration reform say they are pushing for Virginia's laws to be rewritten to protect citizens who live in the commonwealth legally.

During this legislative session, lawmakers will consider nearly 100 bills dealing with immigration. They include proposals that would give state police more power to detain illegal immigrants who commit crimes and legislation that would help verify if people in Virginia are legal citizens.

Former Henrico Delegate, Jack Reid, says illegal immigration is costing the state an untold amount of money.

“The fact is we don't know how much money it's costing us,” Reid said. “Public schools in this state must accept every student brought to them K through 12 - no exceptions. They don't even ask if you're here legally or not.”

Oakland schools to defend students here illegally

Resolution forbids immigration officers on campus without lawyers being called first

By Katy Murphy, STAFF WRITER

Article Last Updated: 01/10/2008 08:20:54 AM PST

OAKLAND — The Oakland school board on Wednesday night took a stand in support of its immigrant students, including those whose families are living in the country illegally.

The policy passed at the board meeting — the first of its kind in the Oakland school district — was written in response to an incident at Melrose Bridges Academy, an elementary school in East Oakland. On the morning of Dec. 18, immigration officers accompanied a pregnant mother, Maria Ramirez, into the school and detained her for questioning after her tearful 6-year-old daughter went to class.

Noel Gallo, the school board member who introduced the resolution, said he hoped the new policy would assure Oakland's immigrant population that the district was committed to educating all of its students.

He also said he hoped it would prevent such events from happening again.

"I'm trying to establish a good relationship with local law enforcement," Gallo said. "I'm also appealing to them to not conduct their business at a school site unless there's an imminent danger."

The policy forbids school staff to ask about a student's immigration status or to require families to provide a Social Security number during registration. It also directs schools to contact the district's legal counsel before allowing immigration officers to enter a school, on the grounds that such a visit would cause a disruption to the educational environment.

Border schools use photographs to try to stem illegal attendance

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

CALEXICO, Calif. — Children are more apt to shield their faces than to smile when Daniel Santillan points his camera.

Santillan's photos aren't for any picture album or yearbook — they help prove that Mexicans are illegally attending public schools in this California border community.

With too many students and too few classrooms, Calexico school officials took the unusual step of hiring someone to photograph children and document the offenders.

Santillan snaps pictures at the city's downtown border crossing and shares the images with school principals, who use them as evidence to kick out those living in Mexico.

Since he started the job two years ago, the number of students in the Calexico school system has fallen by 5 percent, from 9,600 to 9,100, while the city's population has grown by about 3 percent.

"The community asked us to do this, and we responded," said board President Enrique Alvarado of the Calexico Unified School District. "Once it starts to affect you personally, when your daughter gets bumped to another school, then our residents start complaining."

Every day along the 1,952-mile border, children from Mexico cross into the United States and attend public schools. No one keeps statistics on how many children make the trek.

Citizenship isn't the issue for school officials; district residency is.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that illegal immigrants have a right to an education, so schools don't ask about immigration status. But citizens and illegal immigrants alike can't falsely claim residency in a school district.

Enforcement of residency requirements varies widely along the border. Some schools do little to verify where children live beyond checking leases or utility bills, while others dispatch officials to homes when suspicions are raised.