'If you hear something, say something.' After ICE scare, Seattle Public Schools updates guidance

Seattle Public Schools officials are taking steps to improve how the district responds to reports of immigration enforcement activity near schools.

At a school board meeting Wednesday, district leaders announced new district guidance for school staffers if they receive reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in the vicinity of schools.

The new guidance instructs all school employees to alert their principal and safety and security staff if they observe or receive a report of ICE nearby. From there, the safety and security team and the principal can convene to decide how to respond.

“It’s similar to, ‘If you hear something, say something,’” said Associate Superintendent Rocky Torres-Morales. “So we can do an intake and figure out what’s going on and do something about it.”

RELATED: After unconfirmed ICE reports prompt sheltering in place, Seattle schools pledges ‘more centralized decision-making’

The new guidance comes a week after unconfirmed reports of ICE activity prompted four schools in south Seattle to shelter in place for several hours. Although district security staff never saw any ICE presence at or near those four schools on that day, the incident shook local leaders and left Seattle school communities on edge.

Parents and educators called on the district to take a stronger stance against immigration enforcement activity. This includes providing families with more information and resources and better communicating with families should schools need to shelter in place.

Interim Superintendent Fred Podesta stressed that the district already has strong policies in place in the event ICE agents try to access a school building. But he also acknowledged they could do more, particularly by better supporting school principals who have to make big decisions — such as sheltering in place — on the fly with little information.

RELATED: Republican WA congressman: Immigration crackdown has ‘gotten out of hand’

That’s where the new guidance comes in.

“If enforcement shows up on our campus, keeping everybody safe and keeping students away from it, shelter in place makes sense,” Podesta explained on Wednesday. “If there’s something happening six blocks away and the students are going to be on campus anyway … what does that actually buy you? It’s not crystal clear. That’s why I think people need to come together, assess the risk, and (ask) what is the solution?”

“That’s why it’s not at all fair to leave this all in the hands of the building principal to try to figure this out,” he added.

As part of the effort, district officials also rolled out a new website that details district policies and procedures for dealing with ICE, and provides families with resources.

RELATED: A Seattle fourth-grader and his family self-deport to Guatemala

Podesta said school principals will be trained on the new policy on Friday. Training for other school staff has not yet been scheduled; Podesta said individual building leaders will handle that independently.

Podesta hopes this new guidance will allow for a more “unified, systemic response, rather than a building-by-building response,” and that it’s simple enough that it’s “something people can keep in their head, not run to a three-ring binder to figure out what to do.”

Moreover, Podesta also hopes the guidance will help the district prevent unnecessary panic and fear from spreading amongst families and educators like wildfire.

“We want to be thoughtful about making sure people know what they need to know,” he said. “Everyone’s really heightened sense of awareness sometimes works in our favor. Sometimes it can create a lot of concern and anxiety and perhaps can run counter to our message that school is the safest place to be.”

RELATED: Washington state Senate passes mask ban to curb federal immigration enforcement tactics

At Wednesday’s board meeting, Podesta also stressed the district’s existing ICE policy, which clearly states agents are not allowed on district property without a verified warrant or court order. School staff are directed to refer any federal agents to their principal, who is then instructed to turn them away while the request is evaluated by district officials, and to not provide them with any information about any students, families, or district employees.

Podesta also said the district is coordinating its response with city officials and the police department, and is ensuring all contractors — such First Student and Zum, which provide the district’s bus services — know about the guidance.