Massachusetts migrant teams request AG examine Saugus’ scholar admissions coverage

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Massachusetts migrant advocates are requesting Lawyer Normal Andrea Campbell to research Saugus’ scholar admissions coverage which they argue is exclusionary and unconstitutional.

Earlier this month, Attorneys for Civil Rights and Massachusetts Advocates for Kids demanded the Saugus College Committee to revise the coverage that requires college students to be “legal residents whose actual residence is in Saugus,” a request that has since been shut down.

The teams despatched a letter to Campbell on Wednesday, a day after the brand new 12 months began within the North Shore district, to “formally open an investigation into the exclusionary student enrollment practices of the Saugus Public Schools.”

“Opening an investigation will not only protect the rights of schoolchildren in Saugus,” the letter states, “but it will also send a much-needed message to all school districts throughout the Commonwealth: that exclusionary enrollment policies are illegal and will not be permitted to stand.”

“As you are aware,” it continues, “there is growing public awareness of such discriminatory, anti-immigrant practices, especially with the recent media coverage of Saugus’ enrollment policy.”

Particularly, the teams are taking exception to how they imagine the College Committee has exceeded “statutory authority by impermissibly denying enrollment to children whose families do not complete the Town of Saugus Census.”

Below the coverage, written two days after Gov. Maura Healey declared a state of emergency over the migrant inflow final August, households should produce proof of residency, occupancy and identification with acceptable paperwork resembling a Massachusetts driver’s license or photograph ID card, a U.S. passport or one other government-issued photograph ID.

The superintendent may require extra documentation and examine if questions come up

“In addition, the Policy’s overly-stringent residency and proof-of-identity requirements place an undue burden on immigrant and mixed-status families, violating rights guaranteed under both the U.S. and Massachusetts Constitutions,” Attorneys for Civil Rights and Massachusetts Advocates for Kids wrote in an Aug. 15 letter to the College Committee.

Saugus enrolled 23 college students residing within the state’s emergency shelter system final college 12 months, figures from the state Division of Elementary and Secondary Schooling present. Some 72 households resided within the system — shelters, resorts and motels — in June.

“No child who actually resides in Saugus will be denied access to school because of his or her immigration status or the immigration status of his or her parent(s)/guardian(s),” the coverage additional reads.

College Committee Chairman Vincent Serino has mentioned the coverage will probably be saved written as is regardless of the decision for a revision.

“As far as our (admissions) policy, we will continue as always,” Serino mentioned at final week’s committee assembly. “As some of you might’ve seen in the news about Saugus and the stories about migrants, frankly they are just not true.”

“Our policies ensure our students are residents of Saugus and not surrounding communities,” he added. “We owe that to our students, teachers, support staff and taxpayers. As with all of our policies, these are vetted before we go to vote on them, and our policies align with a bunch of other Massachusetts communities. It’s not different.”

Attorneys for Civil Rights and Massachusetts Advocates for Kids mentioned they’re “aware of at least two cases, both involving immigrant families, where SPS’s illegal requirement impeded children’s enrollment and resulted in substantial time out of school.”

“With school starting in Saugus this week and the School Committee digging in its heels, it is imperative that the Attorney General intervene,” mentioned Erika Richmond Walton, an legal professional with Attorneys for Civil Rights. “No child in Massachusetts should be denied the right to an education based on exclusionary policies.”

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