Our Perspective

CMS Families Want Real Safety, Not Sentiment

by Concerned CMS Families for Safe & Welcoming Schools

Every morning in Charlotte, thousands of parents see their children off to school. But for some families, that simple act is filled with fear. What if a parent is detained at drop-off? What if ICE targets bus stops? What if a student comes home to an empty house? 

These aren’t abstract worries. They’re real fears shaping attendance, learning, and trust in our schools. We represent families in CMS schools where students are staying home due to threats of ICE encounters, families feel uncomfortable attending school events, and both staff and families have asked not to be named when raising these concerns. They’re uncertain if they’ll be supported—or targeted. In a county where over 30% of children have at least one parent born outside the U.S., the silence on this issue in the school board race has been striking.

We reviewed candidate platforms, websites, and public remarks and found few concrete steps to address concerns facing immigrant families. So, a group of parents from multiple CMS schools, including us, asked candidates directly: What would you do differently than the current board to ensure that immigrant families feel safe and every child can attend school without fear?

Nine of thirteen candidates replied (view their responses here). All agreed that students deserve to feel safe—a principle that’s easy to embrace. But sentiments alone don’t protect children. Candidates’ proposals varied, but common themes emerged. Two stood out for offering concrete approaches that could strengthen safety and support for all children.

Virtually all candidates emphasized the importance of communicating clearly about policies for protecting students’ rights and training staff on their roles in protecting those rights. These are foundational steps that CMS has begun, though frequently delivered without clarity or empathy. District communications on this issue have been steeped in legalese, leaving families anxious and staff uncertain. By contrast, districts of similar size—including Montgomery County, Philadelphia, Dallas, and Prince George’s County—offer robust immigrant-family resources online: multilingual toolkits, resource hubs, clear protocols, and explicit welcoming statements. CMS is lagging behind.

But supporting students goes beyond communicating and training about upholding students’ basic rights. Several candidates—including Hatch, Haynes, London, and Stone—highlighted the need for expanded mental health supports and trauma-informed practices. Sneed pointed to existing counseling resources. Edwards, Hatch, Haynes, London, and Stone proposed engaging community organizations to build trust and connect students with resources beyond the classroom. If fully realized, these commitments would mark meaningful improvements over CMS’s current reactive approach. 

Two candidates went further. Jillian King proposed a Safe Zone policy for additional protection from ICE actions on campus, to ensure families receive clear information about their rights, and to empower staff to discuss those rights with families. Robert L. Edwards also proposed a Safe Zone policy, along with a Rapid Response & Family Support Network in collaboration with community partners, and transparent attendance and wellness reporting to identify when fear may be keeping students from school. These proposals reflect the kind of concrete planning this moment demands.

Immigration enforcement is expected to intensify. The next board must be proactive on this front: understand the fullness of staff’s, families’, and students’ concerns; engage community partners; plan now to support students in the event of large-scale raids as seen elsewhere; communicate with compassion and clarity; and educate families and students on their rights. After all, protecting immigrant children is not a political stance. It’s a moral responsibility. 

Recently, CMS celebrated student achievement gains—progress that deserves recognition. But what good are stronger academics if children are afraid to attend school? Academic success should never outweigh the fundamental rights, safety, and dignity of students. It’s easy to say we want safe and welcoming schools, yet CMS’s actions to date have fallen short of making that sentiment real. Students are missing school. Families are living in fear. Staff and families are worried about the costs of speaking up. 

Charlotte can change that. The same determined action that drove academic gains must now be applied to closing the gap between our shared value of safety and students’ day-to-day reality. CMS’s tagline this year—‘Endless Possibilities’—feels particularly fitting: the possibilities for better supporting immigrant families and for building schools where every child feels safe, supported, and welcomed are indeed endless.

Last Updated Nov. 3 2025.