Sarasota school board passes controversial ICE cooperation resolution

SARASOTA, Fla. — More than 100 community members packed a Sarasota County School Board meeting Tuesday, as the board voted 3-2 to pass a controversial resolution reaffirming that schools must cooperate with law enforcement agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Tampa Bay 28 reporter Annette Gutierrez has been following local ICE protests since the shooting of Renee Good. Now, she is following through on how these protests are impacting schools.

WATCH: Sarasota school board passes controversial ICE cooperation resolution in 3-2 vote following student protests

The resolution, proposed by board chair Bridget Ziegler, sparked nearly seven hours of heated public comment and prompted several students to skip class to voice their opposition.

"We're in a moment right now where there's a lot of polarization, there's a lot of emotion, and it's our responsibility to make it very clear to our community and to our staff what our expectations are and that we will work with all of our law enforcement agencies, including ICE," Ziegler said.

Ziegler said she proposed the resolution after learning board member Tom Edwards participated in recent ICE protests following the shooting of Renee Good.

Board members who supported the resolution said it reaffirms existing policy requiring cooperation with law enforcement while emphasizing that nothing will change operationally. They noted ICE raids won't happen on campus because warrants are needed for agents to enter school grounds.

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Board members Liz Barker and Tom Edwards, who voted against the resolution, questioned its purpose if nothing would change. They asked whether supporters didn't trust current school security to follow lawful orders.

Students who attended the meeting expressed fear about the possibility of ICE agents on school campuses.

"We don't want ICE in our school," said Gabriela Avila-Ramirez, a 10th grader at Booker High School.

Andrew Light, an 11th grader at Sarasota High School, criticized the board's priorities.

"You cannot promise the American Dream to a scared student and then threaten to deport them and their families at a place where they were promised would protect them," Light said during public comment.

"It's unfortunate that I have to waste my own educational time to come and tell the school board how to legislate," Light added in a follow-up interview with Tampa Bay 28.

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Francisco Madrigal, a parent with a green card, shared concerns for his children's safety.

"I don't know what I would do if I see grown men taking kids with masks in the back of the car — in any country that is called kidnap — here it's different, I don't know why. Please, please let's make sure we keep those kids safe," Madrigal said.

Martin Hyde, a Republican who ran for Congress in 2022, criticized both sides of the debate.

"Both are using fear, both are escalating divisions when their actual job is to run a school system," Hyde said.

The superintendent noted that privacy laws protect students and their immigration status because the district doesn't keep records of students' immigration status.