Parent reports ICE activity near elementary; Durango schools say they investigated and reminded staff of visitor protocols

A Durango parent told the Durango Board of Education on Aug. 19 that an eyewitness followed ICE vehicles through neighborhoods near Gilbert Park Elementary on the first day of school, prompting calls for the district to protect students.

The parent, Jenny Hill, identified herself as the mother of two Gilbert Park students and told the board she received the account from an eyewitness, “Enrique,” who she said followed ICE vehicles after an arrest downtown and saw them travel through the neighborhood around Park Elementary. Hill said she provided Enrique’s contact information so district staff could follow up.

Why it matters: parents said they were alarmed that ICE activity could occur near a school, and asked the district what it would do to protect students and families, especially at a school the board said is highly diverse.

Superintendent Dr. Chester said district staff immediately contacted the school, the district safety director and local police after Hill’s comment and that those checks found “no examples of this” activity at school sites. “We are not aware of this,” Chester said, and added the district would follow up to confirm details with the named eyewitness.

Chester told the board the district has “very specific protocols” for handling visitor or law-enforcement presence at school entrances: front-office staff are trained to verify documentation, principals are instructed to contact the district office immediately, and family liaisons are monitoring community concerns. Chester said the district would re-send family-facing and staff-facing protocol reminders.

Board members and staff also discussed limits on the district’s authority. A board member asked whether the district could keep federal agents off campus; administrators said they could not legally bar law enforcement from parking outside a school, but they would deploy security staff and contact police if such a presence were known. Chester said the district would “immediately have our security people there” and escalate to police when notified.

What the district will do next: district leaders said they will (1) contact the reported eyewitness to verify details, (2) re-send the family letter and staff protocols that outline visitor verification steps, and (3) continue monitoring campus safety in coordination with police and the district safety director.

The board did not take formal action at the meeting; the matter was addressed as public comment followed by staff follow-up and monitoring.