Immigrants

Education news, analysis, and opinion about immigrants, immigrants’ children and immigration

Tracker

Image of a boy with a blue backpack standing in front of the entrance to school.
Which States Are Challenging Undocumented Students’ Right to Free Education?
States are reviving efforts to challenge the 1982 Plyler v. Doe ruling that guarantees undocumented students a free, public education.
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A sign reading "Protect Neighbors" is posted near a bus stop as a school bus passes on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis.
A sign reading "Protect Neighbors" is posted near a bus stop in Minneapolis on Jan. 30, 2026. A lawsuit from two Minnesota school districts and the state's teachers' union says immigration agents have detained people and staged enforcement actions at or near schools, school bus stops, and daycare centers.
Kerem Yücel /Minnesota Public Radio via AP
Law & Courts Educators Sue Over ICE Activity on School Grounds and Nearby
The challenge targets the Trump administration's revocation of a policy that limited immigration enforcement at schools.
Alyson Klein, February 4, 2026
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5 min read
High school students protest during a walkout in opposition to President Donald Trump's policies Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, in Los Angeles. A survey published in December shows how the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement agenda is upending educators’ ability to create stable learning environments as escalated enforcement depresses attendance and hurts academic achievement.
High school students protest during a walkout in opposition to President Donald Trump's immigration policies on Jan. 20, 2026, in Los Angeles. A survey published in December shows how the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement agenda is challenging educators’ ability to create stable learning environments.
Jill Connelly/AP
School & District Management Heightened Immigration Enforcement Is Weighing on Most Principals
A new survey of high school principals highlights how immigration enforcement is affecting schools.
Ileana Najarro, January 29, 2026
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5 min read
MINNEAPOLIS, MN, January 22, 2026: Teacher Tracy Byrd's computer sits open for virtual learning students who are too fearful to come to school.
A computer sits open Jan. 22, 2026, in Minneapolis for students learning virtually because they are too fearful to come to school. Districts nationwide weigh emergency virtual learning as immigration enforcement fuels fear and absenteeism.
Caroline Yang for Education Week
School & District Management ‘Band-Aid Virtual Learning’: How Some Schools Respond When ICE Comes to Town
Experts say leaders must weigh multiple factors before offering virtual learning amid ICE fears.
Ileana Najarro & Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, January 27, 2026
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6 min read
Federal Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Polarized Do You Think Educators Are?
The EdWeek Research Center examined the degree to which K-12 educators are split along partisan lines. Quiz yourself and see the results.
Elle Butler, January 27, 2026
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1 min read
A young man in the city looking at American flag in a surreal window. Concept art of change, solution, freedom, hope, life and environment. Conceptual artwork.
iStock/Getty + Education Week
Families & the Community Opinion ‘What Sort of Nation Terrorizes Children?’: A Teacher’s View From Minneapolis
My students live with the knowledge that anyone they love could be taken by ICE at any moment.
Italia Fittante, January 23, 2026
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4 min read
MINNEAPOLIS, MN, January 22, 2026: Ninth grade teacher Tracy Byrd helps student Avi Veeramachaneni, 14, with his final essay on the last day of the semester at Washburn High School in Minneapolis, MN.
Tracy Byrd helps students with essays on Jan. 22 at Washburn High School in Minneapolis. As immigration raids and protests have played out across the city, he and fellow educators have sought to create a stable environment for students.
Caroline Yang for Education Week
Teaching In Their Own Words ‘Normal Looks Different’: Teaching Through Fear in Minneapolis
Tracy Byrd, a 9th grade English teacher, shares what teaching entails as federal agents patrol his city.
Ileana Najarro, January 22, 2026
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8 min read
Illustration of luggage, airline tickets and visa document.
iStock
Recruitment & Retention Opinion What Trump's $100,000 Visa Fee Could Mean for Schools
An expert on teacher migration explains the possible consequences for international teachers.
Lora Bartlett, January 22, 2026
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5 min read
A Somali flag, right, flies alongside the United States and Vermont flags outside the Winooski School District building, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Winooski, Vt.
A Somali flag, right, flies alongside the United States and Vermont flags outside the Winooski School District building, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Winooski, Vt. The district's effort to show support for Somali students drew intense backlash.
Amanda Swinhart/AP
School & District Management Q&A Why This Leader Is Willing to Risk Losing His Job to Support Immigrant Students
This small Vermont district defies backlash to support immigrant families.
Ileana Najarro, January 14, 2026
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6 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Opinion Minnesota Students Are Living in Perilous Times, Two Teachers Explain
The federal government is committing the "greatest constancy of deliberate community harm."
Larry Ferlazzo, January 14, 2026
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6 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Opinion 'Survival Mode': A Minnesota Teacher of the Year Decries Immigration Crackdowns
Federal agents are creating trauma and chaos for our students and schools in Minneapolis.
Larry Ferlazzo, January 13, 2026
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5 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Opinion 'Fear Is a Thief of Focus.' A Teacher on the Impact of ICE and Renee Nicole Good's Death
At a time that feels like a state of emergency, educators are doing their best to protect students.
Larry Ferlazzo, January 12, 2026
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4 min read
Protesters demonstrate against ICE agents near the the Whipple Federal Building on Jan. 8, 2026.
Protestors gather after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis, on Jan. 7, 2026. The incident later prompted the Minneapolis school district to cancel classes amid broader federal immigration operations.
Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune via TNS
School & District Management Minneapolis Schools Close in Wake of Deadly Shooting, Immigration Enforcement
The districtwide closure marks a departure from schools' responses to ICE presence.
Ileana Najarro, January 8, 2026
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6 min read
Demonstrators hold up signs protesting an immigration bill as it is discussed in the Senate chamber at the state Capitol Thursday in Nashville, Tenn. The bill would allow public school systems in Tennessee to require K-12 students without legal status in the country to pay tuition or face denial of enrollment, which is a challenge to the federal law requiring all children be provided a free public education regardless of legal immigration status.
Demonstrators hold up signs protesting an immigration bill as it was discussed in the Senate chamber at the state Capitol in Nashville, Tenn., on April 10, 2025. The bill, which legislators paused, would have allowed schools in the state to require undocumented students to pay tuition. It was one of six efforts taken by states in 2025 to limit undocumented students' access to free, public education.
John Amis/AP
States Undocumented Students Still Have a Right to Education. Will That Change in 2026?
State-level challenges to a landmark 1982 Supreme Court ruling are on the rise.
Ileana Najarro, December 29, 2025
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5 min read
English Learners Reports Instructing English Learners, In 10 Charts
This report summarizes survey findings related to English learners, including topics ranging from professional development to legal rulings.
December 22, 2025
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