After notifying more than half of New Orleans public schools that their enrollment and registration practices discriminate against children because of their immigration status or that of their parents, the SPLC reported today that the majority of the city’s schools now have enrollment forms that comply with federal law.
The SPLC urged federal officials today to investigate Louisiana’s Coordinated System of Care program, which is failing to prevent young people with severe behavioral health needs from being unnecessarily funneled into detention centers and hospitals.
SPLC helps pass legislation allowing Louisiana students to return to public school after being denied enrollment because of their age.
The SPLC demanded today that 55 New Orleans schools change their enrollment practices to comply with federal law. Many are illegally requiring Social Security numbers.
The SPLC is hosting or supporting events in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi this month to raise public awareness of the need to reform criminal justice policies that are harming vulnerable children.
School officials in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, have agreed to measures that will ensure students will not face discrimination and hostility because of their national origin or English language proficiency.
The U.S. Department of Education today issued important guidance clarifying that the nation’s charter schools must not discriminate against children on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability or language barriers.
A lawyer in the SPLC’s Louisiana office recalls the discrimination faced by Latino families who wanted their preschoolers to have equal opportunities to get a jump on their education.
Kelly Fischer faced discrimination in New Orleans when she tried to find a school for her blind, autistic son. She became a plaintiff in an SPLC suit filed to ensure the city’s public schools comply with federal law by providing students with disabilities the educational services they need.
The SPLC has reached an agreement to improve equal access to Louisiana’s Jefferson Parish Head Start program, which had prevented impoverished Latino preschoolers from enrolling – a violation of federal laws and regulations. (en Español)
