Park City School District has issued a statement responding to a change in immigration enforcement saying schools are no longer protected from immigration authorities. In a letter sent out district employees and families, Interim Superintendent Caleb Fine said that Tuesday the district received notice of new directives from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security permitting federal immigration officers to carry out enforcement actions inside areas previously considered sensitive, including schools. “We recognize the potential concerns this change may bring to our community, and we want to assure you that we are aware of these developments,” Fine said.The letter emphasized several points, including a reassurance all children are welcome in district schools regardless of immigration status, an urging to update emergency contact details and that the district does not collect data regarding district students’ or families’ immigration status.The letter also said that the district will not initiate contact with federal immigration authorities to share student information, adding that counselors are available at all schools to speak with students who may be feeling stressed or fearful.“In the Park City School District, we are committed to giving each and every student our absolute best — every single day,” Fine said. “Guided by our ‘We All Belong’ initiative, we remain focused on providing a welcoming educational environment that supports every student.”The full letter in English and Spanish can be read on the district’s website: pcschools.us/news-media/features/news-details/~board/features/post/information-regarding-new-immigration-policies.On Monday, the Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman issued two directives that the Department of Homeland Security called “essential to ending the invasion of the US southern border and empower law enforcement to protect Americans,” according to a press release from the department.“The first directive rescinds the Biden Administration’s guidelines for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) enforcement actions that thwart law enforcement in or near so-called ‘sensitive’ areas,” the release read.  “The second directive ends the broad abuse of humanitarian parole and returns the program to a case-by-case basis. ICE and CBP will phase out any parole programs that are not in accordance with the law.”The department provided the following statement, attributable to a “DHS spokesperson”: “This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens — including murders and rapists — who have illegally come into our country. Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest. The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense.“The Biden-Harris Administration abused the humanitarian parole program to indiscriminately allow 1.5 million migrants to enter our country. This was all stopped on day one of the Trump Administration. This action will return the humanitarian parole program to its original purpose of looking at migrants on a case-by-case basis.”The full statement is available on the Department of Homeland Security’s website: dhs.gov/news/2025/01/21/statement-dhs-spokesperson-directives-expanding-law-enforcement-and-ending-abuse.The post Park City School District issues statement on federal change in schools’ protection from immigration authorities appeared first on Park Record.