January 16, 2012

School officials question immigration bill

By Kelsey Ryan
Mon Jan 16, 2012, 07:56 PM CST

CARTHAGE, Mo. — A bill in the Missouri Senate that would require public schools to verify the immigration status of incoming students is drawing heat from local school leaders who fear they could be turned into “immigration police.”

The bill, if passed into law, could create a burden on the state’s school districts, critics say.

Senate Bill 590 has a hearing scheduled today before the General Laws Committee. The bill would require public elementary and secondary schools to determine if new students were born in the U.S. or if they are children of immigrants by checking birth certificates or certified copies.

Additionally, it would require the State Board of Education to compile a report for the General Assembly detailing the immigration classification of students and the number who are in English as a Second Language programs, along with the costs involved.

Sen. Ron Richard, R-Joplin, a member of the General Laws Committee, said he has read the bill. He said he is reserving judgment until the hearing.

“It’s a lot of controversial material, and I try to keep an open mind,” Richard said. “I’ll keep getting more information, and we’ll see what happens.”

Carthage Superintendent Blaine Henningsen said he thinks it would be difficult for schools to determine the immigrant status of every child, but they would try their best if the measure is enacted.

About 25 percent of Carthage’s 4,300 students are English language learners, and that demographic has increased at a steady rate over the past four years, Henningsen said.

The Carthage School District has two groups to help bridge the communication barrier between teachers and Hispanic parents: Club Sabatino and the Hispanic Advisory Committee, which was a result of the Carthage 2020 initiative.

“We are charged with the task of educating kids, and what we’ve done is educate any student that’s shown up at our door,” Henningsen said. “To put a policing status on school districts, basically to have the task of determining who is a legitimate American citizen and who isn’t, is beyond the scope of what we do.”

Henningsen said the burden of the legislation also might be felt financially.

“We’re watching the state budget in Jefferson City, and there’s definitely a shortfall with the budget,” he said. “For the state to add something more to our platter is not really realistic at this time.”

Monett Superintendent John Jungmann echoed Henningsen’s sentiments.

“We’re not here to run immigration; we’re here to educate kids,” Jungmann said. “We want to keep our focus on educating students. We try to partner with families to support their education, and this could certainly put a hurdle in the process.”

About 20 percent of Monett’s 2,300 students are English language learners, Jungmann said. The district continues to see a steady increase in that population, he said. The district has a parent advisory council for English language learners.

Said Jungmann: “If kids were scared to go to school, or if it made parents afraid to send kids to school because the schools were made to become immigration police, that could negatively impact their performance and their desire to come to our school, which impacts our community.”

This kind of legislation is surfacing across the country, said Vanessa Crawford, executive director of Missouri Immigrant and Refugee Advocates. She said Senate Bill 590 is similar to laws enacted in Alabama and Arizona. Parts of those laws have been blocked by federal judges, and the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider the Arizona law.

In Alabama, Crawford said, some families stopped sending their children to school because they were afraid of the legislation that was in effect for about a week before it was blocked by the court.

“It sets fears in the immigrant community, with good reason: The stakes are very high,” Crawford said. “Legislation like this doesn’t have to be racially motivated to have a racial effect ... People tend to think of the Hispanic community, but it’s truly a much broader issue than that.”

The proposal would prohibit the release of information about individual students, and the sponsor has said the bill would lead to better tracking of students but wouldn’t keep them out of schools.

Crawford said her organization will have witnesses at today’s hearing in Jefferson City.

The sponsor of the bill is Sen. Will Kraus, R-Lee’s Summit. His office released a statement last week about the proposed legislation:

“Immigration is ultimately a federal issue, and the solution will be a federal solution. But until a solution is reached, the impact of the federal government’s lack of enforcement is being felt at the state level. As fiscal stewards of our residents’ tax dollars, we have a responsibility to determine that impact.”


Another provision

UNDER THE BILL, law enforcement officers would be required to determine the immigration status of people at traffic stops if they have reasonable cause to do so. Failure to carry proper citizenship documentation would be a state misdemeanor.

School officials question immigration bill » Local News » The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO