Guidance for Principals on Law Enforcement actions at CMSD schools.

The Cleveland Metropolitan School District (“CMSD”) is committed to providing a high-quality education to all students regardless of their identity characteristics, including immigration status. CMSD will do its part to honor the rights of students and families who choose to attend our schools and believe schools should be safe places for all students to attend, learn, and thrive regardless of their immigration status.

It is not the District’s obligation to enforce federal immigration laws and the District believes law enforcement efforts should occur in a manner that avoids disruption to CMSD’s educational responsibilities to our community.

That said, schools must recognize the authority of law enforcement personnel and be prepared for the possibility of being contacted or engaged by those agencies who do have such authority. District employees may not engage in any behaviors that unlawfully obstruct a law enforcement agency in its completion of its duties.

This document provides guidance for principals and other school staff on general procedures to follow if law enforcement officials request access to CMSD school facilities, students, or student records.

If an officer seeks access to any CMSD school, building administration/leadership must respond consistent with this protocol, which is intended to honor all legal obligations of the District while maximizing support to families to the extent permitted by law. It is important to understand that any failure to comply with the instructions of a law enforcement officer or otherwise follow the instructions in this document could subject our staff to legal risk.

1. REQUESTS TO INTERVIEW, DETAIN OR ARREST STUDENTS

In the event an officer confirms to a school administrator that they require and/or are requesting access to a CMSD building in order to question, detain or arrest a student, the school administrator should instruct the officer that the District prefers such actions to occur after school hours and off school property and ask the officer to produce evidence of a warrant.

A. If a warrant IS provided, ask to scan a copy to share with the appropriate administrative supports to help you determine the appropriate response. Notify your Network Support Leader of the situation and review the warrant with them. Different types of warrant could be presented, with different implications. It is important to understand the nature and specifics of a warrant before allowing access to the building or a student. Your Network Support Leader will provide additional instruction in coordination with Safety and Security and Legal Services, including support in identifying and complying with any legal obligations created by the warrant.

B. If a warrant IS NOT provided, state that the District does not consent to the officer entering the building to interview, detain or arrest the student. Notify your Network Support Leader of the situation. Your Network Support Leader will provide additional instruction in coordination with Safety and Security and Legal Services.

If the officer does not comply with the school’s requests, school staff should never attempt to physically prevent or block law enforcement from accessing classrooms or other school property, regardless of whether a warrant is presented.

2. REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION

In the event an officer requests information regarding a student from a school administrator, the administrator will respond in accordance with FERPA regulations and directory-information policy requirements, based on one of the two following scenarios.

• For requests for non-directory information, or for directory information of a student with a directory information opt out on file, the administrator will confirm to the officer that they are unable to provide the requested information absent the consent of the parent, the provision of a lawfully issued subpoena or warrant, or information from the officer that assures the administrator that the release of the information is necessary to address a health or safety emergency.

• For requests for directory information of a student without a directory information opt out on file, the administrator will relay only the following information to the officer: student name, address, telephone number, date and place of birth, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, achievement awards or honors, weight and height if a member of an athletic team, field of study, dates of attendance, and date of graduation.

3. NO OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE

Do not hide or assist employees, students, or families in leaving school premises, provide false or misleading information, or discard any important documents or information. Obstructing or otherwise interfering with certain law enforcement activities can be a crime, and anyone involved may be subject to prosecution under federal law. You can make efforts to ensure that any search or seizure is carried out lawfully. Document your interaction and efforts.

4. KEY CONTACTS

For further guidance, building administrators should contact their NSL, who will escalate inquiries requiring the expertise of CMSD Legal Division and Department of Safety and Security as needed.

In the event of media inquiries regarding any related events that occur at your school, please refer all inquiries to the CMSD Communications Division, contacting Janice Edwards at Janice.Edwards@clevelandmetroschools.org or 216.306.7790.

Follow the crisis protocol if law enforcement visits or contacts the school in a manner described in this document.

For additional information see our Student Code of Conduct.

Our educators work hard every day to provide the best opportunities for our scholars, and we offer additional learning experiences for our staff so they can remain on the cutting edge of educational best practices. One example of how we invest in our educators is by sending them to conferences and seminars so they can learn from other schools across the country, and in some cases, we have presented to other school districts about our successes.

A recent Fox news story reported an $850,000 travel budget. That number is closer to $820,000 for 2024 which includes all out of state travel for the last school year. 71% of the travel was for school-based staff and does not include administrators.

 Importantly, 42% of travel was funded by grants. The total travel expenditure represents less than 1% of our overall operating budget and with 3,000 employees, it is a reasonable investment. Core to our beliefs is our commitment to continually grow our learning base for our educators and scholars so we can best prepare them for their futures.

This year, we implemented additional spending controls to make sure travel and meeting expense costs are aligned with our needs. For the current school year, we have spent $311,758.06, which puts us on track to be about 1/3 lower than the previous year. 

The latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results show that while reading scores have continued to decline nationally, CMSD has held steady in both fourth and eighth grade reading from 2022 to 2024. This stability is notable as many urban districts experienced further declines in reading, positioning CMSD as holding ground in a challenging national landscape. In mathematics, CMSD also remained stable, with a statistically significant increase at the 75th percentile in fourth grade math. 

These results follow a significant drop from 2019 to 2022, when the pandemic disproportionately impacted CMSD students more than their peers in other urban districts. Cleveland’s high poverty rate—the highest among NAEP-tested districts—presents additional challenges in academic recovery. However, the district is committed to ensuring every student has access to high-quality instruction and resources to accelerate learning progress.

To drive improvement, CMSD has implemented a consistent, high-quality English Language Arts (ELA) curriculum across all schools and continues to refine math instruction. The district is also closely monitoring student progress with a new electronic gradebook, aligning coursework with state college and career readiness measures, and addressing chronic absenteeism. Investments through School Levy 49 support tutoring, summer programs, and other initiatives to aid recovery and long-term success.

While we acknowledge there is still work to be done, these results show that CMSD is holding steady as the nation struggles with ongoing learning loss in reading. The district remains focused on advancing academic achievement, improving proficiency in math and reading, and ensuring students are prepared for graduation and beyond.