Northside ISD reviews attendance trends, reiterates privacy and cooperation policies after executive‑order concerns

Trustees at the Feb. 11 called meeting reviewed attendance figures for late January and early February and discussed community concerns about immigration enforcement following an executive order issued Jan. 20.

District staff presented a campus‑by‑campus snapshot for the week of Jan. 30–Feb. 5 and compared January 2024 with January 2025. Staff said attendance overall is slightly higher than the previous year for comparable dates; they cautioned that weekday alignment, vacations and other calendar differences can complicate direct comparisons. The district also reported about 100 fewer withdrawals for the comparable period this year versus last year.

Trustees asked whether absences might reflect fear among families after immigration‑related reports in the community. Adrian Gutierrez, who oversees the district’s attendance reporting and public‑education information management system, and other administrators said the district has pushed a unified message to families and staff by School Messenger and social media, and has been in contact with principals to answer family concerns.

District staff described four key points used in messaging to families: the district will cooperate with lawful law‑enforcement requests per policy; federal immigration authorities are not expected to make random campus visits to interview students absent probable cause or an outstanding felony warrant; the district does not collect or retain immigration documentation; and federal student‑privacy law (FERPA) protects certain student records. Staff also noted the constitutional obligation to educate all students regardless of citizenship status.

Trustees and staff said principals and counselors have fielded a small number of calls and that, after district messaging, most principals reported families felt reassured. Trustee Hall and others asked the administration to continue drilling into reasons for absences so the board can distinguish illness or weather‑related drops from absences driven by fear or other causes. Staff said they will continue monitoring nurse reports, withdrawals and campus trends and will report back if patterns suggest attendance impacts from enforcement concerns.

Specific campus figures cited by trustees and staff included a 33% attendance rate noted for Reddix (context and student population vary by campus) and a reported 100% attendance figure for the Second Chance Academy in the snapshot reviewed; trustees said such figures require interpretation because special‑program campuses have different attendance dynamics.

Ending District staff will continue to track attendance, withdrawals and illness reports and will notify trustees if evidence indicates an attendance decline tied to community fears. The district said it will continue its outreach through School Messenger and principal communications.