ALVIN, Texas – Parents in Alvin ISD are raising concerns after students walked out of class last week to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions, saying the district’s response has left students fearful and families searching for answers.
Several parents like Nichole Millikan say students who participated in the walkout were placed in in-school suspension and pressured to identify who organized the protest, including requests to review social media posts and personal videos recorded on students’ phones.
Others say they have not received clear communication from the district about campus safety or how parents would be notified if federal agents were to appear on school grounds.
One parent, Ashley Dobberstein, says she has sent dozens of emails or correspondences to the district since December without receiving a response. Dobberstein says her primary concern is safety and transparency, particularly how quickly parents would be informed if law enforcement activity occurred on campus. She plans to raise those concerns at the Alvin ISD school board meeting Monday evening.
The local concerns come as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has publicly criticized student walkouts tied to immigration protests, comments previously reported by KPRC 2 and Click2Houston.com.
“If you’re a student, you have a job and that’s to go be in a classroom,” Abbott said in public remarks responding to the protests.
Abbott has also warned school districts they could face consequences tied to attendance and funding if walkouts occur during instructional hours. He said the state could examine “the extent to which the school could lose funding because a student was not present for school for that entire day.”
In comments previously reported by KPRC 2, Abbott also addressed student free speech, saying, “The Supreme Court has been very clear about free speech of students, and that free speech of students does not include leaving the school.”
At the same time, federal officials have sought to ease fears around immigration enforcement on school campuses. Homeland Security officials have said immigration arrests at schools would only occur in rare situations involving serious public safety threats.
As of Monday afternoon, Alvin ISD had not publicly detailed any changes to its policies regarding student protests or parent notification procedures. The district’s school board meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the Tommy King Administration Building in Alvin.