National Poll: Most Educators Say ICE Enforcement Makes Schools Feel Less Safe — and 82% Want Schools Designated as Safe Zones

A survey of more than 700 K–12 teachers finds widespread concern that immigration enforcement near schools is driving fear, absenteeism, and disengagement — and that many districts are not giving staff clear guidance on how to respond.

A new national survey of more than 700 K–12 teachers finds that a clear majority believe recent immigration enforcement policies undermine students’ sense of safety at school, and that a majority want schools to be legally protected from campus law enforcement.

Conducted in early 2026 by the Teachers Room, the survey gathered responses from classroom teachers, administrators, support staff, and parents in every urban, suburban, and rural community – from California and Texas to Illinois, New York, Georgia, and the Pacific Northwest. The findings are described in a new policy brief, When Enforcement Comes to the Schoolhouse Door: What Educators Say About ICE in Schools.

The study follows the 2025 repeal of “sensitive area” protections that had been in place for nearly two decades, often keeping them away from schools, churches and hospitals. With those protections removed, teachers report that the threat of law enforcement has reached their classrooms and surrounding communities.

Key Findings

• 62% of respondents said ICE enforcement policies increased or decreased students’ sense of safety at school.
• 82% supports the designation of schools as safe spaces that limit or prohibit the use of ICE on campus — a large number, in short, that cut across ideological and geographic lines.
• 80% he said schools must actively protect students and families or provide limited support within legal boundaries.
• 32% reported that their district provided no guidance, or vague guidance, on how to respond if ICE agents showed up on campus.

Anxiety in the Classroom

Teachers described a type of anxiety that they said was different from normal school stress, caused by the fear of family separation. Teachers reported families keeping children at home during enforcement actions, decreased attendance at school conferences and events, and decreased use of school-based health services, meals, and counseling. Several noted that the chilling effect extends to the entire student body, not just undocumented students.

“My job is to educate and protect children, not to act as an extension of government law enforcement,” wrote one Chicago high school teacher who responded to the survey.

The guidance gap adds to the difficulty: nearly one in three teachers said they don’t have a clear framework for responding to law enforcement at school, including confusion about the legal difference between administrative warrants, which can be served by ICE, and judicial warrants signed by a judge.

Application for Integrated Security

The basis of the debate in a nutshell Plyler v. Doe (1982), a US Supreme Court decision that guaranteed undocumented children access to a free public education. While that decision does not preclude state enforcement, the brief argues that the guarantee is nullified in practice when fear keeps children from entering classrooms.

Based on these findings, this brief recommends that states issue clear written law enforcement response policies, that lawmakers legislate protections for sensitive areas, that safe zone protections extend to bus stops and commuter routes, and that law enforcement communities receive funding for trauma-informed mental health services.

“This study was eye-opening especially as it shows that teachers in the United States are not only called to teach content, but to deal with social problems – especially the concern about whether children will be kidnapped by their government,” said Francesca Warren, Founder of the organization. Teacher’s Room.

About the Survey

The survey was a national self-selected survey of more than 700 teachers that was distributed in early 2026. The percentages are approximate, and the findings are intended to reflect the sentiments of teachers rather than represent the country. Obvious duplicate or spam responses are not included. The accompanying brief also draws on background research from the American Council on Immigration and the Vera Institute of Justice.

About the Teacher’s Room

Our vision is a world where politicians, parents, and the general public recognize that teachers are an important part of educational reform and their opinion is needed. Therefore, in this new world, teachers should be empowered as experts in education. This new world will be a place where students will truly be able to learn and not be trapped by routine programs and tests. Parents and teachers will be able to work together to enable real change without the intervention of politicians in the education system.

A full policy report is available here.