During his campaign, now President Donald Trump vowed to launch “the largest deportation program in American history.” Since taking office, he has signed multiple executive orders and issued directives aiming to fulfill this promise.

Some efforts, such as an executive order ending birthright citizenship, have been blocked by the courts. Others, like changes in Department of Homeland Security rules allowing ICE to make arrests in previously protected “sensitive locations” such as schools and churches, have become law.

The Trump administration is also attempting to overturn local and state sanctuary laws, which restrict cooperation with federal immigration authorities. During Trump’s first term, California successfully challenged an attempt to penalize sanctuary jurisdictions by withholding federal law enforcement grants. Similarly, the current administration is attempting to pressure sanctuary states and cities by threatening to withhold transportation funds.

California has allocated $50 million to fight federal immigration policies—$25 million for lawsuits against the administration and $25 million for legal aid to immigrants facing deportation.

An email sent by San Diego Community College District (SDCCD) on Jan. 29, just nine days after Trump took office, seeks to reassure students that “California law prohibits local agencies, including public education institutions like ours, from assisting in federal immigration enforcement.”

School districts nationwide, including SDCCD, have issued guidance highlighting the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal law that requires schools to protect the confidentiality of students’ personally identifiable information, including immigration status.

For SDCCD specifically, this guidance also emphasizes AP3415, an administrative procedure that clarifies how SCCCD interprets and intends to comply with California sanctuary laws. AP3415 states that only the Chancellor and district counsel are authorized to cooperate with immigration enforcement officials, such cooperation must take place in the district office and not on college campuses, and any unauthorized cooperation from staff absent “extenuating circumstances” is grounds for termination.

Chancellor Gregory Smith reaffirmed this policy in a YouTube video sent to students on Feb. 5. The district has also distributed 10,000 cards informing staff that they are not authorized to speak with immigration enforcement officials.

In 2019, California enacted AB 1645, a law designed to help undocumented students navigate college successfully. It mandates that all public colleges and universities in California appoint a “Dreamer Resource Liaison”— a designated staff member who is trained to support undocumented students with financial aid applications, academic advising and potential legal issues related to their immigration status.

While not explicitly mandating a physical Dreamer Resource Center (DRC) the requirement for a dedicated liaison encouraged the creation of such spaces. Indeed, all community colleges within SDCCD now have a DRC. At San Diego Mesa College, the DRC assists undocumented students with the California Dream Act application, which is a state-based financial aid program. It also helps with college costs by offering incentives, bookstore credit, and meal cards. Additionally, it provides legal services through Jewish Family Service (JFS), and offers academic, career, and personal counselling.

According to Angel, the counselor coordinator of the Mesa DRC, since Trump’s recent election there has been a significant increase in undocumented students seeking legal counsel, with a particular rise in concerns about the state of DACA, a temporary work permit available to undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children. Trump has wavered on  the program, sometimes proclaiming support and at other times a willingness to dismantle it.

Angel also noted that since the removal of the aforementioned “sensitive locations” protections, more undocumented students are requesting their classes—and especially DRC events—be moved to zoom out of fear of going on campus. As per an internal survey conducted by the DRC, while a solid majority of undocumented students at Mesa College still feel safe attending their classes on campus, nearly half (46%) are now uncomfortable attending DRC events in person.

One of Angel’s main concerns about the current administration is the climate of fear it is fueling. He believes that Trump’s rhetoric is intentionally creating a climate of uncertainty in which an increasing number of immigrants are too afraid to participate in public life, leading predictably to a rise in self-deportations.“Some families are afraid to go to work and of course how are you supposed to live and support your family, especially in San Diego where it’s expensive, if you’re not working?” he said.

He thus sees one of his main roles as informing undocumented students and their families about California and SDCCD’s policies of non cooperation with immigration enforcement. When asked if he is concerned the Trump administration might successfully challenge some of these protections, he answered that “if Trump wants to challenge policies we have here in California he has to go through some procedures and he can’t just say things.”

He believes that while Trump’s first and current terms have pushed many undocumented immigrants further into the shadows, they have also spurred greater institutional support within California.“When Obama was president there was nothing like the DRC. There was no safe spaces. I feel like all this (Trump’s presidency) has really increased people’s desire to help undocumented immigrants especially when it comes to their education,” he said.