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Miami Herald
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Some states reexamine school discipline as Trump order paves go-ahead
In the wake of President Donald Trump's executive order aiming to reinstate "common sense" school discipline, more states may follow and expand the authority of teachers and school officials to deal with disruptive students. The order, signed in April, repeals prior federal guidance that encouraged schools to address racial disparities in discipline, arguing that such policies promoted "discriminatory equity ideology" and compromised school safety by pressuring administrators to underreport serious student misconduct. In some states, new legislation already is trending toward giving teachers more authority to address student misbehavior. In West Virginia, for example, a new law creates a structured process for responding to violent, threatening or disruptive behavior among students in grades K-6. Under the law, a student exhibiting such behavior can be immediately removed from class, evaluated by counselors or behavioral specialists and placed on an individualized behavior plan. If there's no improvement after two rounds of intervention, the student could be moved into a behavioral intervention program or an alternative learning environment. West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey, a Republican, and supporters say the law empowers teachers to maintain safe classrooms. "This legislation provides teachers with the tools to regain control of the classroom and ensure safe learning environments for our kids," Morrisey said at the bill's signing. In April, the Texas House of Representatives passed a bill referred to as the "Teacher's Bill of Rights" with a bipartisan vote of 124-20. That bill, now sitting in the Senate's education committee, would significantly expand the grounds for out-of-school suspensions, allowing students to be suspended for repeated disruptions or threats beginning in third grade. It would reverse earlier changes that limited suspensions for younger students. It also would mandate that students making terroristic threats or assaulting school employees be placed in alternative education programs for at least 30 days. Texas civil rights groups argue that the bill would impose a one-size-fits-all punitive approach, rather than addressing students' developmental and behavioral needs. Alycia Castillo, associate director of policy at the Texas Civil Rights Project and a former teacher, said state lawmakers are taking the wrong approach by mandating sweeping discipline policies for a state as diverse as Texas. During the 2020-21 school year, according to the latest data available from the U.S. Department of Education, Black students faced the highest rates of disciplinary action across all categories - suspension and expulsion - among all racial and ethnic groups. They were 39% more likely than white students to receive in-school suspensions, 70% more likely to face out-of-school suspensions, and 71% more likely to be expelled. The disparities were even starker for Black students with disabilities, who experienced suspension and expulsion rates far exceeding those of both their white peers and non-disabled students. Reviving old, harsh disciplinary policies risks disproportionately harming students of color, students with disabilities and those from low-income backgrounds, Castillo said. "What works in Austin may not work in West Texas," Castillo said. "Children are naturally disruptive - that's part of their development," she added. "Excluding them only harms their growth into functional adults." Restorative justice models In recent years, some other states have passed laws promoting restorative practices in schools, in which students and teachers work through problems and focus on repairing the harm caused by disruptions or conflict. Michigan's 2017 law requires schools to consider restorative approaches before suspensions or expulsions, aiming to repair harm rather than exclude students. Nevada began mandating restorative justice approaches in 2019, but scaled back that approach in 2023. This year, Maryland passed a law requiring the state to establish "restorative practices schools," specific schools with trained educators who use the approach in everyday discipline. Kimberly Hellerich, an assistant professor at Sacred Heart University and a former K-12 teacher, said discipline policies should go beyond punitive measures to foster accountability and community healing. "Adding restorative practices to accompany codes of conduct can allow students to recognize the impact of their actions on themselves, peers, the teacher, the class and the school community," Hellerich said. In her own classrooms, Hellerich used what she called "community circles" to guide students in processing behavior, offering apologies and rebuilding trust. "The apology served as a way to restore the student's relationship with the entire class community," she said. Calls for a cultural shift on expectations While lawmakers debate discipline procedures, other education advocates warn that an even deeper issue is unfolding inside classrooms: the gradual erosion of behavioral expectations and academic rigor. Jessica Bartnick, co-founder and CEO of the Dallas-based mentorship program Foundation for C.H.O.I.C.E., said that declining school discipline and lowered standards are quietly undermining educational outcomes. "Discipline is the backbone of effective learning," Bartnick, who supports the Texas legislation, told Stateline in an email. "Without it, classrooms become chaotic, instructional time is lost and teachers are forced to shift their focus from instruction to behavior management." Bartnick said efforts to promote equity sometimes inadvertently lower behavioral standards and deprive teachers of the tools they need to maintain safe learning environments. She also criticized lenient grading policies and unlimited test retakes, arguing that they diminish the value of preparation, responsibility and resilience. "If students are shielded from the discomfort of failure, they are also shielded from the growth that comes with it," she wrote. "If we want to prepare students for a world that will not offer endless second chances, we must return to a classroom culture grounded in discipline, responsibility, and rigor." ____ Stateline reporter Amanda Hernández contributed to this report. Stateline reporter Robbie Sequeira can be reached atrsequeira@ Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Some states reexamine school discipline as Trump order paves go-ahead
A school bus drives through El Paso, Texas. The state is among those leaning toward stricter school discipline procedures with a bill that would allow pupils as young as third grade to be suspended. (Photo by) In the wake of President Donald Trump's executive order aiming to reinstate 'common sense' school discipline, more states may follow and expand the authority of teachers and school officials to deal with disruptive students. The order, signed in April, repeals prior federal guidance that encouraged schools to address racial disparities in discipline, arguing that such policies promoted 'discriminatory equity ideology' and compromised school safety by pressuring administrators to underreport serious student misconduct. In some states, new legislation already is trending toward giving teachers more authority to address student misbehavior. Shaken by post-pandemic disruptions, some states take a harder line on school discipline In West Virginia, for example, a new law creates a structured process for responding to violent, threatening or disruptive behavior among students in grades K-6. Under the law, a student exhibiting such behavior can be immediately removed from class, evaluated by counselors or behavioral specialists and placed on an individualized behavior plan. If there's no improvement after two rounds of intervention, the student could be moved into a behavioral intervention program or an alternative learning environment. West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey, a Republican, and supporters say the law empowers teachers to maintain safe classrooms. 'This legislation provides teachers with the tools to regain control of the classroom and ensure safe learning environments for our kids,' Morrisey said at the bill's signing. In April, the Texas House of Representatives passed a bill referred to as the 'Teacher's Bill of Rights' with a bipartisan vote of 124-20. That bill, now sitting in the Senate's education committee, would significantly expand the grounds for out-of-school suspensions, allowing students to be suspended for repeated disruptions or threats beginning in third grade. It would reverse earlier changes that limited suspensions for younger students. It also would mandate that students making terroristic threats or assaulting school employees be placed in alternative education programs for at least 30 days. Texas civil rights groups argue that the bill would impose a one-size-fits-all punitive approach, rather than addressing students' developmental and behavioral needs. Alycia Castillo, associate director of policy at the Texas Civil Rights Project and a former teacher, said state lawmakers are taking the wrong approach by mandating sweeping discipline policies for a state as diverse as Texas. Children are naturally disruptive — that's part of their development. – Alycia Castillo, associate director of policy at the Texas Civil Rights Project During the 2020-21 school year, according to the latest data available from the U.S. Department of Education, Black students faced the highest rates of disciplinary action across all categories — suspension and expulsion — among all racial and ethnic groups. They were 39% more likely than white students to receive in-school suspensions, 70% more likely to face out-of-school suspensions, and 71% more likely to be expelled. The disparities were even starker for Black students with disabilities, who experienced suspension and expulsion rates far exceeding those of both their white peers and non-disabled students. Reviving old, harsh disciplinary policies risks disproportionately harming students of color, students with disabilities and those from low-income backgrounds, Castillo said. 'What works in Austin may not work in West Texas,' Castillo said. 'Children are naturally disruptive — that's part of their development,' she added. 'Excluding them only harms their growth into functional adults.' In recent years, some other states have passed laws promoting restorative practices in schools, in which students and teachers work through problems and focus on repairing the harm caused by disruptions or conflict. Trump's school choice push adds to momentum in statehouses Michigan's 2017 law requires schools to consider restorative approaches before suspensions or expulsions, aiming to repair harm rather than exclude students. Nevada began mandating restorative justice approaches in 2019, but scaled back that approach in 2023. This year, Maryland passed a law requiring the state to establish 'restorative practices schools,' specific schools with trained educators who use the approach in everyday discipline. Kimberly Hellerich, an assistant professor at Sacred Heart University and a former K-12 teacher, said discipline policies should go beyond punitive measures to foster accountability and community healing. 'Adding restorative practices to accompany codes of conduct can allow students to recognize the impact of their actions on themselves, peers, the teacher, the class and the school community,' Hellerich said. In her own classrooms, Hellerich used what she called 'community circles' to guide students in processing behavior, offering apologies and rebuilding trust. 'The apology served as a way to restore the student's relationship with the entire class community,' she said. While lawmakers debate discipline procedures, other education advocates warn that an even deeper issue is unfolding inside classrooms: the gradual erosion of behavioral expectations and academic rigor. Discipline is the backbone of effective learning. – Jessica Bartnick, co-founder and CEO of Foundation for C.H.O.I.C.E. Jessica Bartnick, co-founder and CEO of the Dallas-based mentorship program Foundation for C.H.O.I.C.E., said that declining school discipline and lowered standards are quietly undermining educational outcomes. 'Discipline is the backbone of effective learning,' Bartnick, who supports the Texas legislation, told Stateline in an email. 'Without it, classrooms become chaotic, instructional time is lost and teachers are forced to shift their focus from instruction to behavior management.' Bartnick said efforts to promote equity sometimes inadvertently lower behavioral standards and deprive teachers of the tools they need to maintain safe learning environments. She also criticized lenient grading policies and unlimited test retakes, arguing that they diminish the value of preparation, responsibility and resilience. 'If students are shielded from the discomfort of failure, they are also shielded from the growth that comes with it,' she wrote. 'If we want to prepare students for a world that will not offer endless second chances, we must return to a classroom culture grounded in discipline, responsibility, and rigor.' Stateline reporter Amanda Hernández contributed to this report. Stateline reporter Robbie Sequeira can be reached at rsequeira@ SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Deported family of U.S. citizen girl recovering from rare brain tumor is determined to return
A girl recovering from a rare brain tumor celebrated her 11th birthday Sunday, hundreds of miles away from everything she's known — her friends at school, her community at church, her home. She's one of four U.S. citizen children who were sent to Mexico from Texas three months ago when immigration authorities deported their undocumented parents. Fearing for their safety after the mixed-immigration-status family was taken to an area in Mexico that's been known for kidnapping U.S. citizens, they haven't given up on being able to return to the U.S. — primarily to continue the girl's medical treatment. On Friday morning, the family is traveling to Monterrey to meet with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. They hope that sharing their immigration plight motivates legislators to advocate for their return under humanitarian parole, according to a family representative. 'Pressure from the public about the deportation of vulnerable United States citizen children really is effective, and members of Congress are answering that call,' Rochelle Garza, president of the Texas Civil Rights Project, the legal advocacy and litigation organization representing the family, told NBC News on Thursday. Democratic Reps. Adriano Espaillat of New York and Sylvia Garcia and Joaquin Castro of Texas are set to meet with the family, according to a spokesperson from the Texas Civil Rights Project. 'It's important that the public continue paying attention to this but also continue engaging and encouraging members of Congress to take action,' Garza said. The girl's mother first told NBC News about the family's ordeal in March. The case got the attention of several other congressional lawmakers, including Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Alex Padilla of California as well as Rep. Al Green, D-Texas. Since then, five other similar cases, including a mother who was deported to Honduras last month with her two U.S. citizen children, one of which is a 4-year-old boy with Stage 4 cancer, have become public. 'It would not surprise me if this were much more systemic than what we are currently seeing,' Garza said. The mother previously told NBC News that on Feb. 3 the family was driving from the Rio Grande Valley, Texas, area where they lived to Houston, where their daughter's specialist doctors are based, for an emergency medical checkup. On the way there, they stopped at a stateside immigration checkpoint, one they have passed through multiple times. The parents were equipped with letters from their doctors and lawyers to show the officers at the checkpoint. But immigration authorities arrested the parents after they were unable to show legal immigration documentation. According to their attorney, Daniel Woodward, other than lacking 'valid immigration status in the U.S.,' the parents have 'no criminal history.' He added the parents were in the process of obtaining T visas, a temporary immigration benefit for victims of human trafficking. Five of their children, ages 15, 13, 11, 8 and 6 — four of whom are U.S. citizens — were with them when they were arrested. The parents and the children were taken to a detention facility, where they spent 24 hours before they were placed in a van and dropped on the Mexico side of a Texas bridge on Feb. 4. NBC News is not publishing the family members' names for safety reasons. Attorneys for the family filed a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in March requesting a probe into abuses they say the family faced in U.S. detention. In the filing, they also requested immigration authorities grant humanitarian parole to the undocumented parents, the girl and one of her siblings. But that DHS office, which protected the civil rights of both immigrants and U.S. citizens, was dismantled shortly after the attorneys filed the complaint — forcing them to refile it with the Office of Inspector General at the Department of Health and Human Services. They have not yet received a response. A DHS spokesperson previously told NBC News that reports of the family's situation are 'inaccurate' and declined to speak on the specifics of the case, citing privacy reasons. They said in a statement that when 'someone is given expedited removal orders and chooses to disregard them, they will face the consequences.' In response to a similar but separate case involving the removal of U.S. citizen children in connection with their mother's deportation, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Thursday: 'The narrative that DHS is deporting American children is false and irresponsible reporting,' adding that immigration authorities ask mothers if they wish to be removed with their children or if they want the children to be placed in the safe custody of someone the parent designates. McLaughlin added that undocumented parents can 'take control of their departure' by using the CBP Home app, the Trump administration's self-deportation app. Speaking from Mexico in March, the mother of the 11-year-old said in a video message in Spanish provided to NBC News that she and her husband, when they were detained, 'faced the worst decision, an impossible one, to be permanently separated from our children or to be deported together.' When undocumented parents of U.S.-born children are picked up by immigration authorities, they face the risk of losing custody of their children. Without power-of-attorney documents or guardianships outlining who will take care of the children left behind, the children can go into the U.S. foster care system, making it harder for parents to regain custody of their children in the future. Just after her birthday, the girl had her first medical checkup in Monterrey this week. Denisse Molina, a humanitarian outreach coordinator at the Texas Civil Rights Project, said it took her 'two exhausting days, countless phone calls, and being bounced between hospital departments' to secure a medical appointment and schedule an MRI for the girl. 'No one—especially a child in need — should have to fight this hard just to access essential care,' Molina told NBC News in a statement Thursday. While this temporary solution is bringing the family some relief, regular medical checkups are critical, according to the child's mother and the family's advocates. The child was diagnosed with the brain tumor last year and underwent surgery to remove it, the mother said after learning of the diagnosis through translators. But Woodward said that since contacting the girl's doctors and obtaining her medical records in the family's pursuit to obtain humanitarian parole, she found out the cause of the tumor was an 'unnamed 'novel' condition.' Few medical specialists can effectively monitor these kinds of cases; the girl's U.S. doctors are among those with the necessary expertise. The girl needs scans and checkups every three months, her doctors told the Texas Civil Rights Project. The surgery that saved the girl's life last year left her with some lasting side effects. The swelling on her brain is still not fully gone, her mother said in March, causing difficulties with speech and mobility of the right side of her body. Before the family was removed from the U.S., the girl was routinely checking in with doctors monitoring her recovery, attending rehabilitation therapy sessions and taking medication to prevent convulsions. In Mexico, the family has been able to enroll four of their children in school while they get ready to apply for humanitarian parole later this month at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. According to the USCIS website, applicants may demonstrate urgency by establishing a reason to be in the U.S. that calls for immediate action, including critical medical treatment, or the need to visit, assist or support a relative who is ill. 'Our hope is that members of Congress will learn about this particular case and support our request for humanitarian parole for the family,' Garza said. This article was originally published on
NBC News
09-05-2025
- Health
- NBC News
Deported family of U.S. citizen girl recovering from rare brain tumor are determined to return
A girl recovering from a rare brain tumor celebrated her 11th birthday on Sunday, hundreds of miles away from everything she's known — her friends at school, her community at church, her home. She's one of four U.S. citizen children who were sent to Mexico from Texas three months ago when immigration authorities deported their undocumented parents. Fearing for their safety after the mixed-immigration status family was taken to an area in Mexico that's been known for kidnapping U.S. citizens, they haven't given up on being able to return to the U.S. — primarily to continue the girl's medical treatment. On Friday morning, the family is traveling to Monterrey to meet with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. They hope that sharing their immigration plight motivates legislators to advocate for their return under humanitarian parole, according to a family representative. 'Pressure from the public about the deportation of vulnerable United States citizen children really is effective, and members of Congress are answering that call,' Rochelle Garza, president of the Texas Civil Rights Project, the legal advocacy and litigation organization representing the family, told NBC News Thursday. Democratic Reps. Adriano Espaillat of New York and Sylvia Garcia and Joaquin Castro, both of Texas, are set to meet with the family, according to a spokesperson from the Texas Civil Rights Project. 'It's important that the public continue paying attention to this but also continue engaging and encouraging members of Congress to take action,' Garza said. The girl's mother first told NBC News about the family's ordeal in March. The case got the attention of several other lawmakers in Congress including Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Alex Padilla of California as well as Rep. Al Green, D-Texas. Since then, five other similar cases, including a mother who was deported to Honduras last month with her two U.S. citizen children, one of which is a 4-year-old boy with Stage 4 cancer, have become public. 'It would not surprise me if this were much more systemic than what we are currently seeing,' Garza said. How it all started The mother previously told NBC News that on Feb. 3 the family was driving from the Rio Grande Valley, Texas, area where they lived, to Houston, where their daughter's specialist doctors are based, for an emergency medical checkup. On the way there, they stopped at a stateside immigration checkpoint, one they have passed through multiple times. The parents were equipped with letters from their doctors and lawyers to show the officers at the checkpoint. But immigration authorities arrested the parents after they were unable to show legal immigration documentation. According to their attorney, Daniel Woodward, other than lacking 'valid immigration status in the U.S.,' the parents have 'no criminal history.' He added the parents were in the process of obtaining T visas, a temporary immigration benefit for victims of human trafficking. Five of their children, ages 15, 13, 11, 8 and 6 — four of whom are U.S. citizens — were with them when they were arrested. The parents and the children were taken to a detention facility, where they spent 24 hours before they were placed in a van and dropped on the Mexico side of a Texas bridge on Feb. 4. NBC News is not publishing the family members' names for safety reasons. Attorneys for the family filed a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in March requesting a probe into abuses they say the family faced in U.S. detention. In the filing, they also requested immigration authorities grant humanitarian parole to the undocumented parents, the girl and one of her siblings. But that DHS office, which protected the civil rights of both immigrants and U.S. citizens, was dismantled shortly after the attorneys filed the complaint — forcing them to re-file it with the Office of Inspector General at the Department of Health and Human Services. They have not yet received a response. A DHS spokesperson previously told NBC News that reports of the family's situation are 'inaccurate' and declined to speak on the specifics of the case citing privacy reasons. They said in a statement that when 'someone is given expedited removal orders and chooses to disregard them, they will face the consequences.' In response to a similar but different case involving the removal of U.S. citizen children in connection to their mother's deportation, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Thursday: 'The narrative that DHS is deporting American children is false and irresponsible reporting,' adding that immigration authorities ask mothers if they wish to be removed with their children or if they want the children to be placed in the safe custody of someone the parent designates. McLaughlin added that undocumented parents can 'take control of their departure' by using the CBP Home app, the Trump administration's self-deportation app. Speaking from Mexico in March, the mother of the 11-year-old said in a video message in Spanish provided to NBC News that she and her husband, when they were detained, 'faced the worst decision, an impossible one, to be permanently separated from our children or to be deported together.' When undocumented parents of U.S.-born children are picked up by immigration authorities, they face the risk of losing custody of their children. Without power-of-attorney documents or guardianships outlining who will take care of the children left behind, the children can go into the U.S. foster care system, making it harder for parents to regain custody of their children in the future. Making the case for humanitarian parole Just after her birthday, the girl had her first medical checkup in Monterrey this week. Denisse Molina, a humanitarian outreach coordinator at the Texas Civil Rights Project, said it took her 'two exhausting days, countless phone calls, and being bounced between hospital departments' to secure a medical appointment and schedule an MRI for the girl. 'No one—especially a child in need — should have to fight this hard just to access essential care,' Molina told NBC News in a statement Thursday. While this temporary solution is bringing the family some relief, regular medical checkups are critical, according to the child's mother and the family's advocates. The child was diagnosed with the brain tumor last year and underwent surgery to remove it, the mother said after learning of the diagnosis through translators. But Woodward said that since contacting the girl's doctors and obtaining her medical records in the family's pursuit to obtain humanitarian parole, she found out the cause of the tumor was an 'unnamed 'novel' condition.' Few medical specialists can effectively monitor these kinds of cases; the girl's U.S. doctors are among those with the necessary expertise. The girl needs scans and checkups every three months, her doctors told the Texas Civil Rights Project. The surgery that saved the girl's life last year left her with some lasting side effects. The swelling on her brain is still not fully gone, her mother said in March, causing difficulties with speech and mobility of the right side of her body. Before the family was removed from the U.S., the girl was routinely checking in with doctors monitoring her recovery, attending rehabilitation therapy sessions and taking medication to prevent convulsions. In Mexico, the family has been able to enroll four of their children in school while they get ready to apply for humanitarian parole later this month at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. According to the USCIS website, applicants may demonstrate urgency by establishing a reason to be in the U.S. that calls for immediate action, including critical medical treatment, or the need to visit, assist or support a relative who is ill. 'Our hope is that members of Congress will learn about this particular case and support our request for humanitarian parole for the family,' Garza said.
Miami Herald
08-05-2025
- Miami Herald
Mom and 3 kids, including 2 citizens, deported to Mexico, TX advocacy group says
A mother and her three children were deported to Mexico after the family's advocates said they were detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and taken to Laredo, Texas, an advocacy group said. Now, family and legal advocates are unable to get in touch with Denisse Parra Vargas and her 8-year-old, 5-year-old and 4-year-old children, the Texas Civil Rights Project said in a May 8 news release. McClatchy News reached out to ICE on May 8 but did not immediately receive a response. The two youngest children are U.S. citizens, according to the group. The mother had been in the United States since 2016 to escape domestic violence, advocates said. The family's interactions with ICE began on April 30 when Parra Vargas and her partner were pulled over in Austin by Texas Highway Patrol in an unmarked vehicle, advocates said. ICE detained the two as a result of the stop, advocates said, but the mother was released with an ankle monitor so she could get her kids from school. By May 2, Parra Vargas told an attorney that she was released by ICE, but she was given dates to report to Intensive Supervision Appearance Program check-ins in San Antonio, the group said. Her partner, however, was still in ICE custody and had a hearing scheduled on May 6 in Pflugerville. But when the family arrived to what they were told was a hearing or appointment, ICE detained them, advocates said. Legal and community advocates were told the mom and children were taken to a facility in Laredo, but on May 7, they were deported to Mexico, according to the group. Advocates said they do not know the whereabouts of the family and if they were separated during the deportation process. The Department of Homeland Security said the mother chose to take her children with her when she was deported, according to a statement posted in X, formerly known as Twitter. Officials said Parra Vargas was issued an order of removal in 2019. 'ICE did not allow for communication with nearby family members who were willing to keep the children and instead detained them for 24 hours in secretive locations before deporting the U.S. citizen children to Mexico. ICE was informed by the family and legal advocates that the children were U.S. citizens and ICE knowingly deported them anyway in violation of their own policies and laws. ICE has no authority to detain or deport U.S. citizens regardless of the status of their parents,' the group said in the news release.
