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Glendale Union High School District has agreed to change its enrollment practices following a federal civil-rights investigation.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona accused the district of refusing to enroll a 19-year-old Salvadoran refugee in a complaint this spring to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights. The ACLU claimed district officials “intentionally discriminated” against the student in violation of federal law. 

This month, Glendale Union agreed to revise its enrollment procedures to resolve the complaint — the resolution does not admit wrongdoing on the district’s part. 

“These are kids, these are very young people,” Darrell Hill, staff attorney for the ACLU of Arizona, said. “They’ve been through so much trying to come to this country, trying to learn a new language. I think it gave them a bad introduction into what American education is about.” 

The agreement will require Glendale Union to avoid asking prospective students about their immigration status, according to a document shared with The Arizona Republic. District Superintendent Brian Capistran also agreed to enroll all students in district schools regardless of immigration status, age or English-language learner status. 

“We remain committed to meeting the educational needs of our school community,” Glendale Union spokeswoman Kim Mequita wrote in an emailed statement. “This voluntary agreement reflects that commitment.” 

What sparked the agreement? 

In the original complaint, ACLU’s attorneys wrote that Cortez High School turned away the Salvadoran refugee because the school does not admit immigrant or refugee students older than 17 who aren’t proficient in English. 

Federal law requires schools to offer education to all students, regardless of their immigration status, age (until 21) or language proficiency. 

The prospective student, who came to the United States in 2016 as an unaccompanied minor seeking asylum, lives in the district’s boundaries. The refugee’s name is redacted in the complaint.

After the ACLU’s complaint this spring, the organization identified another student, also a refugee from El Salvador, denied enrollment at Glendale High School and Apollo High School for similar reasons. 

“She was told by district staff that she would not be admitted to Apollo High School because she was not proficient in English; her parents were outside the United States; she had a pending immigration case,” according to a letter to Glendale Union’s attorneys from the ACLU.

In the first case, a district employee recommended the student enroll in an online high school or an online charter school, according to the complaint. The student did not have a computer with internet access. 

Hill said it’s hard to gauge how often districts deny older refugee students. The ACLU is looking for students similarly impacted who may need assistance.

Both students eventually found a place to enroll, but Hill said the practice still delayed their education and hindered their ability to assimilate into the community. 

“It’s a really alienating experience,” Hill said. 

District will alter enrollment practices

In a resolution with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, Capistran agreed to: 

  • Enroll all students residing in the district regardless of immigration status, English-language learner status, or age until a student is 21, per Arizona law. 
  • Enroll older students (usually 17 or older) in “comprehensive” high schools instead of referring those students to online schools. 
  • Follow the same procedures in enrolling students, regardless of age, immigration status, English-language learner status or age. 
  • Direct staff to avoid asking prospective students about their immigration status. 
  • Not deny enrollment to older students, even if it appears they will age out (at 21) before getting their diploma. 
  • Not deny enrollment to a student if they’re unable to provide records from previous schools or their birth certificates. 

Glendale Union will have to provide enrollment procedures for approval by the Office of Civil Rights sometime next month. 

Meanwhile, it’s up to the community to hold Glendale Union accountable, Hill said. 

“I really think it was a conscious choice on their part to exclude students over the age of 17,” he said. “This is not an accident … They should have to answer to try to deliberately break the law.”

Reach reporter Lily Altavena at [email protected] or 602-444-8927. Follow her on Twitter: @lilyalta.

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