As federal immigration policy shifts continue to ripple through K-12 schools, educators can better support immigrant students and families by developing a basic understanding of immigration law and processes, experts say.
That’s the goal behind the City University of New York’s Initiative on Immigration and Education, or CUNY-IIE, a resource hub for educators working with immigrant student populations.
While Pre-K-12 educators aren’t expected to be immigration experts, and should not offer legal advice, teachers can help foster a greater sense of belonging in their classrooms by understanding the basics of immigration topics and how to discuss them, said Tatyana Kleyn, a principal investigator for CUNY-IIE.
That sense of belonging is key, researchers say, not only for academic success but also to address spikes in absenteeism, which researchers have tied to increased immigration enforcement activity in recent months.
Kleyn and Tanya Broder, senior counsel for the National Immigration Law Center, shared some common questions and topics of immigration that educators and the general public have asked over the years. Here are the responses.
Are all English learners immigrants? Are they all Hispanic?
No. Most English learners are U.S.-born citizens, according to U.S. Census data.
While a majority are Hispanic and speak Spanish at home, English learners in the U.S. represent a wide range of racial and ethnic backgrounds and speak a variety of home languages.
After Spanish, the most commonly spoken home languages for English learners are Arabic and English, according to federal data. Cases of English as the home language of English learners include scenarios of students adopted from other countries who were raised speaking another language but currently live in households where English is spoken.
Are undocumented immigrants criminals just by being undocumented?
No. Being undocumented is not a criminal offense, said Broder with the NILC. Immigration proceedings are usually civil, not criminal.
Some immigration-related actions can be criminal violations (for example, reentering the country after deportation), Broder added, but being undocumented alone is not a crime.
Are undocumented immigrants “cutting the line” for citizenship?
No. The idea of a clear, first-come, first-served line to citizenship is a myth, Broder explained.
“People who live in the United States and contribute to U.S. communities want nothing more than to improve their immigration status, and the pathway is very complicated and very difficult for many,” she added.
Even family-based petitions can involve decades of waiting for a visa. A person’s country of origin and refugee status, among many other variables, can also affect access to citizenship.
“The idea that someone can go to the post office or the library and wait in line, and get to the front of the line and get their green card is a myth,” Broder said.
Can undocumented students go to college?
Yes. There’s no federal ban on admission to college for undocumented students, Broder said.
However, as of February 2025, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina have laws barring undocumented students from enrolling in certain public institutions. Other states have moved to deny undocumented students access to lower-cost in-state tuition.
Still, teachers and school counselors working with undocumented students can find ways to advise them on college pathways, Kleyn said.
Instead, Kleyn has sometimes come across the misconception that college is fully out of reach for these students.
“One teacher having that misconception and telling that to one student, you are changing the whole course of their lives,” Kleyn said.
Do all undocumented students have DACA?
No. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) provides protection from deportation and work authorization, but only for individuals who were in the U.S. since 2007 or earlier. That means most current K-12 students are not eligible, Broder said.
Applying for DACA also requires a formal application process, and initial requests are currently not being processed as of June, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Kleyin said some educators mistakenly believe DACA is a blanket status that applies to all undocumented students.
Can teachers ask students about their immigration status?
No. Public schools cannot ask or collect immigration status information from students and families, due to the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Plyler v. Doe, which guarantees all children, regardless of status, the right to a free public education.
Collecting immigration data may deter families from enrolling their children, experts warn. Some state lawmakers took action following President Donald Trump’s election win in November to undermine the landmark court case.
Even without knowing students’ immigration status, Kleyn and Ariana Mangual Figueroa, an associate investigator for CUNY-IIE, advise teachers to assume that every classroom is comprised of students from mixed-status households, in which family members have various legal statuses, including being U.S. citizens, legal residents, or undocumented immigrants.
One analysis of census data found that in 2019, about 6.3 million children lived in mixed-status households.
“We’re all here together, and we have different access to different privileges or different rights,” Kleyn said.
Are elementary students too young to discuss current immigration issues?
Not necessarily. There are age-appropriate ways to discuss current immigration topics with elementary students, Kleyn said.
That can include using storybooks, films, and guest speakers which discuss topics relevant to many students. Teachers don’t need students to share their own experiences to broach these topics, Kleyn said.
“Schools are not a bubble. They’re a part of what’s happening in our larger society … so we need to be talking about the current reality of immigration and who immigrants are,” Kleyn said.
