by John Glidden | glid24@protonmail.com | March 2, 2025
VALLEJO – The Solano Community College Governing Board will get its first look at a new district-wide policy on Wednesday that would codify the college’s commitment to protecting the privacy of its students, regardless of their immigrant status.
In addition, the seven-person governing board is being asked to approve a similar resolution that publicly declares the district’s “commitment to maintaining a safe, inclusive, and supportive educational environment for all students.”
Both items come in response to a new presidential administration which has pledged to deport undocumented immigrants. Since January there have been raids by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) around the country.
The proposed policy would “discourage non-enforcement collaborations with immigration agencies, provide guidance on handling immigration enforcement encounters, and outline support measures for affected students, faculty, and staff,” according to a staff report on the new policy.
“It also ensures that community members are not deterred from reporting crimes or cooperating with Public Safety due to fears about immigration status, fostering a safe campus environment focused on the educational excellence of all students,” the staff report adds.
In response to the change in federal immigration policy, several other higher education institutions have approved similar resolutions affirming their protecting of access to public education for all students regardless of immigration status.
The Napa Valley Community College District Board of Trustees unanimously adopted a resolution last month reaffirming “its commitment to protecting and supporting immigrant, undocumented, Dreamer, and LGBTQ+ students.”
Solano’s proposed resolution would take a similar stance.
“Solano Community College District is committed to providing an inclusive, supportive, and secure environment for all students, regardless of their immigration status, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or ability,” the resolution reads.
It also rejects any use of campus resources, personnel and/or policies for immigration enforcement purposes, denies access to ICE or any other immigration enforcement agents, without a valid judicial warrant, Court order, and/or subpoena and prohibits “any call to detain, question, or arrest individuals solely based on their suspected undocumented immigration status.”
The resolution also declares Solano Community College will protect student privacy, and provide access to resources by offering “mental health counseling and support that is culturally sensitive to the needs of undocumented students, LGBTQ+ students, and other under served and marginalized groups.”
The district launched a web page to provide information to assist undocumented students, including financial aid, community and legal resources.
The California Legislature is expected to review Senate Bill 48, introduced by State Sen. Lena Gonzalez, which would “prohibit a local educational agency and its personnel from disclosing or providing, in writing, verbally, or in any other manner, the education records of or any information about a pupil, pupil’s family and household, school employee, or teacher to a United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, or any other federal official engaging in immigration related investigation or enforcement, without a judicial warrant, and regarding a pupil’s educational records or personal information, without the written consent of the pupil’s parent or legal guardian.”
The Solano Community College District Governing Board will meet at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 5 inside the Administration Building, Denis Honeychurch Board Room 626, 4000 Suisun Valley Road, in the city of Fairfield.
To view the live stream of the meeting, click here.
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