Oregon school board votes down resolution expressing support for immigrant students

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The school board in a western Oregon community whose residents are predominately Latino or Hispanic has voted down a resolution expressing public support for immigrant students.

Members of the Woodburn School Board worried a public statement on the issue of rights and protections for immigrant students could compromise federal funding for the district, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported. Tuesday’s vote came after Woodburn Superintendent Juan Larios told the board repeatedly nothing in the resolution was new.

“We do have protocols in place in our buildings to protect students,” he said. “This is just an opportunity for us to all get behind a singular message.”

The proposed resolution stated that Woodburn schools should be welcome places and that children, regardless of immigration status, have a right to free public education. It also said the board was committed to eliminating barriers that might keep students from going to school, including “the fear and anxiety related to immigration topics and federal immigration policies.”

The measure, largely symbolic, failed on a 2-3 vote. The result caught community members and union leaders by surprise.

But Larios told the news outlet the vote would not diminish district efforts to support students from immigrant families.

State statistics show that for the prior school year, 87% of Woodburn students and 42% of teachers identified as Hispanic or Latino. About two-thirds of the city’s population identifies as Latino or Hispanic, and some households have mixed-citizenship status.