A Miami-Dade County Public Schools teacher is facing deportation after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials, the United Teachers of Dade (UTD) confirmed Thursday.
The teacher, a middle school science instructor, was a recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and had been in the United States since childhood.
The teacher was detained at an immigration hearing despite having the proper authorization and documentation to work for the school district, according to the union. While Miami-Dade Public Schools confirmed a teacher was taken into custody by federal authorities, they emphasized that all district employees are authorized to work at the time of their hiring.
The Miami Herald reported that the teacher’s detention occurred Thursday, adding to mounting concerns among educators and immigrant communities. DACA, a temporary program that protects eligible undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children, allows recipients to work legally, obtain a Social Security number, and secure a driver’s license. However, the program does not grant permanent legal status, leaving many vulnerable to immigration enforcement actions.
Teacher unions address concerns over school raids
With growing concerns over federal immigration actions in schools, Miami-Dade and Broward teachers’ unions held a press conference on Thursday to clarify the situation. While union leaders stressed that no raids had occurred, they acknowledged fears of deportation were spreading—especially in light of the Trump administration’s reversal of a Biden-era policy that had designated schools, places of worship, and healthcare facilities as protected zones from immigration enforcement.
“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson stated. “The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense.”
Despite this policy shift, union leaders reassured the public that immigration officials cannot freely enter schools. “They do not have a free-for-all; they cannot just come into a school, they cannot walk around. They are not allowed. We have safety protocols,” said Karla Hernandez-Mats, president of United Teachers of Dade, according to a report by WUSF. Any attempt to detain an individual in a school requires a warrant signed by a federal judge, which would first be reviewed by the district for legal sufficiency.
“There have been no ICE raids in any schools, I want to make that clear,” Hernandez-Mats added.
Broward Teachers Union President Anna Fusco echoed this sentiment, noting that while teachers and administrators have been informed of protocols if ICE agents appear at a school, “We’re not gonna break the law, but we don’t agree with it. We know that our students have to come to school and be safe.” She suggested that recent drops in school attendance were likely linked to a national “Day Without Immigrants” protest rather than direct immigration enforcement actions.
Fears are growing among immigrants as the Trump administration intensifies its crackdown on illegal immigration with increased deportation and raids. South Florida is home to a significant number of immigrants; as of 2023, approximately 5 million immigrants resided in Florida, accounting for about 22.1% of the state’s population.
A substantial portion of these individuals are from the Caribbean region. Notably, Miami-Dade County alone is home to approximately 864,800 Caribbean immigrants, representing 20% of the total Caribbean foreign-born population in the United States.
