OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Parents enrolling children in Oklahoma public schools will be required to provide proof of their child’s U.S. citizenship or legal immigration status under a proposed rule approved Tuesday by the State Board of Education.
The board voted unanimously to approve the rule aimed at helping President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. It still needs to be approved by the Legislature and the governor.
Here are some things to know about the proposed rule.
What does the rule require?
The rule requires parents or legal guardians to provide proof of citizenship of their children when enrolling them in public school, including a U.S. birth certificate, U.S. passport, consular report of birth abroad, permanent resident card or other legal document.
The proposed rule would not prevent students without legal status from enrolling or keep them from attending school. But it would require districts to record the number of students for whom proof of citizenship was not provided and to report those numbers, excluding personally identifiable information, to the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
Why is the rule being proposed?
Republican State Superintendent Ryan Walters, the state’s education chief, said the rule is needed to help schools gather information about where to place staff and resources.
“Our rule around illegal immigration accounting is simply that,” Walters said. “It is to account for how many students of illegal immigrants are in our schools.”
There are an estimated 90,000 Oklahoma residents without legal status, including an estimated 6,000 children enrolled in schools in Oklahoma, according to the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank focused on improving immigration policy.
How are people reacting to the rule?
While the board met, hundreds of students and protesters gathered outside the administration building to protest the board’s decision.
The plan has been sharply criticized by teachers and civil liberty groups, and is causing fear within Oklahoma’s immigrant communities, said Rep. Arturo Alonso-Sandoval, a Democrat who represents Oklahoma City’s heavily Hispanic south side.
“The community is scared, obviously,” Alonso-Sandoval said. “The conversations I’ve had with parents, all they’re doing is trying to provide the best opportunity for their kids, like any parents. They are starting to question: Do I unenroll my child from school?”
Javier Terrazas, a construction worker from south Oklahoma City with an elementary school-aged daughter, said he’s noticed how fearful some residents are when they go to pick up their children.
“Seeing the parents’ faces, the look of fear when I go to pick up my daughter,” he said while protesting the board’s decision. “Everybody is looking over their shoulder. I’ve never seen that.
