• New Paltz Central School District Immigrant Student Protections

    New York State residents, over the age of five and under the age of twenty-one years of age who have not received a high school diploma are entitled to attend the public schools in the school district in which they reside without paying tuition. School districts must ensure that all students within the compulsory school age attend full time instruction. Undocumented children, like US citizen children, have the right to attend school full time as long as they meet the age and residency requirements established by state law. The US Supreme Court held decades ago, in Plyler v. Doe (1982), that school districts may not deny students a free public education on the basis of their undocumented or non-citizen status, or that of their parents or guardians. 

    We are not permitted to ask questions at registration that may reveal immigration status. While we may request information, such as social security numbers, after registration, we cannot inadvertently give the impression that information related to immigration will be used in registration/enrollment determinations.

    There are concerns about what our obligations are with respect to possible inquiries from representatives of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including requests to meet with or interview students, or to obtain access to student records. Both NYFCA (New York Family Court Act) and FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) require us to keep student records confidential. 

    It has long been the NYSED's position that law enforcement officers may not remove a student from school property or interrogate a student without the consent of the student’s parent or guardian, except in very limited situations (when law enforcement officers have a valid warrant or a crime has been committed on school property). As you know, the federal government has rescinded the longstanding “sensitive areas” policy that generally prevented immigration enforcement from occurring on college campuses and in our hospitals. Nevertheless, it is important to emphasize that NYS Executive Order 170.1, which has been continued by Governor Hochul, requires a judicial warrant or judicial order – not an administrative warrant – for execution of civil arrests by federal immigration authorities within State facilities, including all NYS public schools. .

    Similarly, NYSED advised that, upon receipt of a request from ICE to access student education  records, school districts should immediately consult with their attorneys, as disclosure may violate FERPA. 

     

  • In January 2025, Governor Kathy Hochul, the Office of the New York State Attorney General, and the New York State Department of Education, released guidance on Safeguarding the Rights of Immigrant Students. That guidance can be found here.