AOS 91 Board Chair Makes Statement on Civil and Human Rights
Statement says that ICE must provide judicial warrant to enter schools; AOS says it will follow Maine Human Rights Law
MOUNT DESERT ISLAND—Late Thursday afternoon, the AOS 91 Board Chair, Jessica Stewart, released a statement via email to the Mount Desert Island Regional School System community about the school system’s commitment regarding the Maine Human Rights law as well as the schools’ policy about Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Stewart wrote that the “AOS 91 remains committed to ensuring that all students are welcomed, included, and treated with respect, kindness, and fairness. We will continue to follow Maine Human Rights law.”
She also wrote that schools will not allow ICE into building “without a signed judicial warrant and we will not collect or share information about students’ immigration status or other sensitive information in line with educational privacy laws.”
The statement comes during a time when President Trump’s administration has said that Maine was violating federal civil rights laws. For months, members of the community have expressed concerns about police and school obligations related to ICE procedures.
According to a recent Bangor Daily News article by Erin Rhoda and Callie Ferguson, “The federal agency found on Feb. 25 that the Maine Department of Education had violated the anti-discrimination law Title IX by denying girls ‘an equal opportunity’ to participate in athletics by allowing ‘male athletes to compete against female athletes,’ according to its determination letter.”
Title IX is a 1972 law which prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools. Pres. Trump signed an executive order, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” meant to prohibit transgender student-athletes from women’s sports. In late February, at a governors’ meeting, Pres. Trump and Maine Governor Janet Mills clashed over the order, with Gov. Mills saying that as governor, she was complying with Maine and federal laws, but not the executive order.
“Under the Maine Human Rights Act, Maine allows its few transgender students to participate on sports teams that reflect their gender identity. But President Donald Trump has threatened to cut off Maine’s federal funding over its practices and launched three federal investigations into various Maine departments and entities” the Bangor Daily reporters summarized.
Stewart’s statement is in full below except for her phone number, which we have removed:
Dear MDIRSS Community,
During this tumultuous time, AOS 91 remains committed to ensuring that all students are welcomed, included, and treated with respect, kindness, and fairness. We will continue to follow Maine Human Rights law and strive to make school a safe, affirming, and welcoming place for all students regardless of identity. Students, (and their families), staff and faculty, of all races, ethnicities, gender identities, and sexual orientations are welcomed, affirmed, and respected at our schools and are entitled to an excellent education. Protecting all students' civil and human rights so that they can access a full and complete education is a priority for AOS 91. The district- through staff, faculty, and administrators- are available to provide you and your family with support and resources about your rights as a student in our district.
As noted by the superintendent at a previous meeting, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will not be admitted to any schools without a signed judicial warrant and we will not collect or share information about students’ immigration status or other sensitive information in line with educational privacy laws. The School Resource Officer will not cooperate with ICE on school grounds or seek immigration information about students. Federal law entitles all students to education regardless of immigration status and we want all students to be in school and learning.
Our dedicated faculty will continue to teach all subjects from math to history using evidence based rigorous curricula.
We encourage students and/or parents to reach out to a trusted staff member or administrator such as their school principal or assistant principal or Dean of Curriculum if they have questions or are concerned about feeling welcome and safe at school. As always, our policies are on the AOS 91 website, linked here, including ones that deal with civil and human rights, harassment and bullying, student safety, and student privacy, and we encourage any student or parent to reach out if you have questions or concerns.
I can be reached at jessica.stewart@mdirss.org. You can also reach out to Superintendent Mike Zboray at mike.zboray@mdirss.org.
Thank you for being a part of our learning community,
Jessica Stewart
AOS 91 Board Chair
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