Minneapolis school officials said Friday they will give families the option of remote learning for a month, after concerns that federal immigration enforcement tensions could make some children feel unsafe getting to school. Under the temporary plan, teachers will deliver lessons from their classrooms to students in school and to students at home in a model similar to how many districts operated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The district described the remote option as a response to “unsafe” feelings among students and families in a city where tensions are high over federal immigration enforcement. Administrators said the decision was not quick, pointing to long meetings with input from school principals and the teachers union and acknowledging the coordination required to deliver virtual school.
A Minneapolis school administrator told staff in an email that the approach was meant to meet students’ needs. “This meets a really important need for our students who are not able to come to school right now,” the administrator wrote in an email shared with staff late Thursday.
Administrators also laid out what they said the remote option would accomplish. In emails obtained by The Associated Press, the administrator said remote learning would keep students safe, help them keep up with their work, and let them be counted present to avoid “a ton of dropouts next week.”
The plan comes as districts in multiple cities have seen attendance dips tied to immigration enforcement actions, according to parents and educators. Advocates in other places have urged schools to consider remote options, particularly for immigrant families who might feel vulnerable, and Minneapolis appeared to be among the few districts to reintroduce the option, the Associated Press reported.
The context includes federal attention and conflict affecting the community, the report said. It pointed to President Donald Trump’s public comments about the Somali community in Minneapolis, a pledge to send additional federal immigration agents, and the deadly shooting of Renee Good, a mother of three and a U.S. citizen, reported to have occurred Wednesday.
The Associated Press also described incidents near school sites around that period. On the same day as the shooting, immigration enforcement agents detained someone outside the city’s Roosevelt High School around dismissal time, which led to altercations with bystanders, and the Minneapolis Federation of Educators said agents deployed tear gas and detained an educator before releasing them.
Natasha Dockter, first vice president of the local teachers union representing Minneapolis public school teachers, said the escalation had created a perception that some people felt unsafe coming to and from school, and that the union pushed for a remote option. “We’ve, you know, heard concerns from our members, from families, and wanted to advocate that there is an option for remote learning,” Dockter said.
A student, Boisey Corvah, said students have been sharing videos online about the shooting and the Roosevelt High episode. He said he worries especially about Latino friends due to possible encounters with immigration enforcement and the crackdown’s effects on mental health, and he predicted they would have less freedom to gather after school.
Other districts have considered similar responses in the past year. The Associated Press reported that this fall, Chicago school board members called for a remote option during a federal intervention there, though Chicago Public Schools resisted offering it. It said New York state last year allowed districts to offer virtual schooling to students afraid of Trump’s immigration crackdown, though it was unclear how many districts used that option.
The report also highlighted a legal and logistical challenge districts can face: schools are normally prohibited from asking families about immigration status, and offering remote learning only for students from immigrant homes could unintentionally identify someone in the household as being in the country illegally. Advocates have urged schools to offer flexible remote options for all students instead of only certain categories.
Viridiana Carrizales, chief executive officer of ImmSchools, said she was recommending that districts provide flexible options for all of their students and that learning does not necessarily have to happen in the classroom. “We are hoping and recommending for districts to have flexible options for all of their students. Learning doesn’t necessarily have to happen in the classroom,” Carrizales said. She said she is working with districts in New Jersey, New York and Texas on helping parents keeping children home from school or withdrawing them, and that conversations have become more urgent in recent weeks as districts lose students.
Elsewhere, the report said demand for existing virtual programs has increased since Trump returned to office. In the Portland, Oregon, suburb of Hillsboro, the school district opened enrollment slots at its online academy, district spokesperson Beth Graser said.
In Minnesota, state guidance echoed the possibility of remote instruction. In a statement Thursday, the Minnesota Department of Education said districts and charter schools can provide remote options for enrolled students, and Commissioner Willie Jett said online plans need to consider the needs of all students, including students with disabilities and students learning English.
Minneapolis public schools were closed Thursday and Friday because of the tumult, the Associated Press reported. The district said teachers would still be directed to report to their school buildings to receive more details about the online instruction option, which it said will be available until Feb. 12.