Immigration | California School-Based Health Alliance

The California School-Based Health Alliance believes in a world where all students have access to health care. We envision a bright and diverse California where every child is honored and celebrated regardless of their immigration status.

We’re proud to work alongside many of you to ensure that all children—not just some—feel safe visiting a SBHC (school-based health center). For many students, SBHCs represent a home away from home. They feel comfortable visiting their SBHC because they know staff can provide high-quality care, support, and guidance.

You can help make your school or SBHC feel even more safe for students by downloading and displaying the full-size poster above. It’s a small way to show your support for the right of all children, regardless of immigration status, to access health care.

Download Our Sanctuary for All Poster

All people in the United States, regardless of immigration status, have certain rights and protections under the U.S. Constitution. While it is our hope that you never have to encounter immigration officials (ICE) in your school or in your school-based health center, it is important to have a plan in place to help reduce the stress of the unexpected; most importantly, to know what steps to take in which case you do. We’ve gathered a number of resources you can use if need be.

Here you will find some resources on immigration.

CSHA Resources for Supporting Undocumented Students

Webinar Recording: Let’s Talk: Protecting Immigrant Families (October 2019)
Tipsheet: Navigating the Current Climate – Having a Preparedness Plan
Supporting Undocumented Students: A module of our Youth Health Worker curriculum that can be used with youth development groups

Other Resources

Immigrant Legal Resource Center’s Red Cards – Red cards help people assert their rights and defend themselves in many situations, such as when ICE agents go to a home or school. You can place an order here.
Federal Funds for “Sanctuary” Jurisdictions – Read the analysis from the California Budget and Policy Center about President Trump’s executive order to withhold federal funds for sanctuary cities and the temporary suspension of the executive order by a federal judge at the end of April 2017.
Resources for community health centers & clinics – CaliforniaHealth+ Advocates, affiliated with the California Primary Care Association, has created this comprehensive list of resources for community clinics. This includes “Know your Rights” information that you can share with patients, current and pending California laws around immigration, talking points, and information about ICE practices.
- Family Preparedness Plan
Resources for school districts and school boards – The California School Boards Association developed resources to help support all students, regardless of immigration status. Resources include legal guidance, sample board resolutions & policy, and a letter from State Superintendent calling for public schools to remains safe havens for students and families.
Information about CA’s Undocumented Students – A great factsheet highlighting key demographic data on undocumented students in California, policies affecting immigrant students as well as opportunities and challenges to support these students. Helpful terminology and pertinent policy information for California’s students, educators, policymakers, and other stakeholders.
Public Health Actions for Immigrant Rights – A comprehensive guide from Public Health Awakened that provides helpful strategies, actions, and resources for people working in local health agencies and/or health clinics.
DACA & resources for educators – Immigrants Rising developed a California High School Educator Webinar Series to provide tips and tools for helping undocumented high school students. They have many helpful resources for school staff and will continue to add resources to their website as details emerge from the new administration.
DACA & resources for schools – The rhetoric of this election has left many immigrant children and families worried about their future and protection in this country. The Immigrant Legal Resource Center has created many resources to inform, prepare, and protect immigrants. ILRC has many resources on DACA and resources for schools as they play a critical role in supporting immigrant families.
Immigrant rights in schools and health facilities – The National Immigration Law Center hosted this presentation to discuss campus safety policies, policies to protect patient information in healthcare, developments around DACA, and mobilization efforts.

Public Charge

As of March 9, 2021, the public charge policy finalized by the Trump administration is no longer in effect. This means that it is safe for immigrants and their families to use health, nutrition, and housing programs they qualify for.

What changed? On March 9, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) decided to stop defending the Trump-era public charge regulations. Not long after, the federal courts dismissed the pending appeals in the case. This means that the final judgment entered in the Northern District of Illinois on Nov 2, 2020, which vacated the public charge rule nationwide, is now in effect. In other words, the Trump Administration’s 2019 public charge rule is permanently blocked, nationwide.

Protecting Immigrant Families has helpful advocacy and family-facing messages about this change.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

The Trump Administration tried to end the DACA program in 2017 but, in June 2020, the US Supreme Court ruled against the administration. As a result, the DACA program remains in place. Immediately following the Supreme Court decision, the administration issued a memo saying that new applications for DACA would not be accepted and renewals would be limited to one year instead of two. As recently as November 2020, a federal judge ruled the memo invalid. For more information on the status of DACA, please visit the Immigrant Legal Resource Center or an immigration lawyer.

AB 699 and School Policies

Effective January 1, 2018, AB 699 requires that all local educational agencies in California implement additional protections to ensure that all students, regardless of immigration status or country of birth, have the opportunity to pursue their education without undue fear or risk. To learn more about AB 699, read this overview from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center.

In April 2018, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra issued new guidance to help California’s public K-12 schools and other local educational agencies develop policies to protect the rights of undocumented students and their families. The guide is designed to help schools better understand protections that safeguard the privacy of undocumented students and their families, and to serve as a model for local school districts.

Click to view the model policies and guidelines, quick-reference guide, and checklist. The checklist is available in Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog, and Arabic.