Parent urges Lebanon schools to publicly reassure immigrant families after local ICE activity

Amanda Cook, a parent of students in the Lebanon Special School District, told the board during public comment that families need a clear, public commitment that schools will remain safe and welcoming regardless of students' immigration status.

"Please offer reassurance, either through a formal resolution as other districts have done, or express it through existing outlets that we can all see," Cook said, identifying herself and giving her address. She cited ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity at the local courthouse, a 02/1972 agreement between ICE and the sheriff’s department, and a state bill passed earlier the same day that she said will require schools to report student immigration information.

Cook asked the board to make an explicit statement that school staff should not be expected to enforce immigration enforcement actions in schools and asked the district to renew the expectation that schools be "safe, caring, welcoming places for all students and staff regardless of their background." She said the request is about compassion and the emotional well-being of students who have been asking classmates and teachers for devices or whistles because they fear family members might be detained.

The board did not make an immediate formal resolution on the record; the public comment concluded and the meeting moved on to new business.

What happens next: Cook requested a visible district-level reassurance (a resolution or public statement). The board’s next formal opportunity to act would be at a subsequent meeting or through a posted statement from district leadership.