Resources to Preserve Welcoming and Safe Schools
California’s public schools and early childhood learning spaces serve children of all races, religions, and economic backgrounds, so they can grow and thrive. As advocates, we have long worked to make these spaces safe, inclusive, and affirming where joyful learning can happen for every child. But under the Trump administration, this diverse education system is under serious threat.
A small group of right-wing billionaires, bullies, and bigots is trying to undermine our schools by promoting false ideas about what happens in them. Their aim: to keep us from working together to protect our students. This is our moment to fight back using tools we own—movement solidarity and community engagement—to make public institutions truly serve our children and families.
Below is a resource hub with tools by and for our partners to combat these threats as we keep working for public education that empowers all children to grow into full participants in this multiracial democracy. Catalyst California will continue to add to this hub to provide timely, relevant resources to preserve welcoming and safe schools across the state.
Please email us at edequity2@catalystcalifornia.org with additional resources, updates, suggestions, and feedback.
Protecting Immigrant Students
Resources
- Creating Safe Spaces | All In For Safe Schools: Equips ECE and TK-12 educators with guidance to create safe, inclusive, and protected environments for immigrant students to promote equitable access to learning and thriving. Published 2025.
- How Federal Policies are Undermining Educational Opportunity for Immigrant Students | Learning Policy Institute: Blog post that examines how recent federal actions threaten undocumented students’ access to education and highlights what’s needed to support them. Published 2025.
- California Early Care & Education Safe Spaces | The Children’s Partnership: Shared strategies early learning providers across the state can utilize to build protective, inclusive environments for children in immigrant families. Published 2025
- Immigration Enforcement Actions at California Schools: Guide for Students and Families | California Attorney General: Quick guide for students and families to know their rights regarding immigration enforcement actions at schools. Published 2025.
- Quick Reference for School Officials | California Attorney General: Guide for school officials to know their rights regarding immigration enforcement actions at schools. Published 2025.
- Resources for Immigrant Students | California Teachers Association: Details about California’s plans to support students, educators, and families in the coming years, as well as Know Your Rights resources for our communities. Updated 2025.
- Step-by-Step Family Preparedness Plan | Immigration Legal Resource Center: Resource toolkit for immigration families to prepare in case of emergency including childcare options, immigration services, and constitutional rights. Published 2024.
- Community Resource Guide for Immigrant Angelenos | Los Angeles Unified School District: Information on constitutional rights, DACA recipients, refugees, legal service providers, workplace & school safety, fraud, domestic violence, and important contact information.
- We Are One/Estamos Unidos | Los Angeles Unified School District: Campaign to formalize and amplify LAUSD’s efforts to protect all students, including protocols on immigration enforcement as a sanctuary district. Updated 2025.
- AB699 Safe Schools for Immigrant Students: Toolkit for LEA Leaders | Los Angeles County Office of Education: Supports LEA leaders as they prepare to protect the rights of immigrant students and their families within the public education system. Published 2025.
Tools for School Boards to Advance Equity
- Guidance Update: Equity Requirements and Legal Obligation to California Students | Public Advocates: Joint letter that urges school leadership to uphold equity requirements despite the federal attacks on DEI, emphasizing that laws still mandate closing opportunity gaps and supporting all students.
- Equity Policies Toolkit for School Boards | Race Forward: HEAL Together: Comprehensive toolkit for school board members to support equity for all students through policy, budgeting, and implementation in their districts. Published 2023.
- Education Justice Academy:Organization that trains aspiring school board leaders to run a campaign, build coalitions, and enact budgets and policies that advance educational justice.
- The Costs of Conflict: The Fiscal Impact of Culturally Divisive Conflict on Public Schools in the United States | UCLA Institute for Democracy, Education, and Access: Report that captures the costs of school board conflicts regarding book bans, protecting LGBTQ+ youth, and teaching about race and racism. Published 2024.
- Model Resolution for Welcoming & Safe Schools for All | Catalyst California & Partners: Model Resolution guidance for school districts to promote welcoming and safe schools for all students. Published 2018.
- Legal Guidance Providing All Children Equal Access to Education, Regardless of Immigration Status | California School Boards Association: Legal guidance to give governing boards clarity regarding their responsibilities under federal and state immigration law. Published 2024.
- Promoting a Safe and Secure Learning Environment for All: Guidance and Model Policies to Assist California’s K-12 Schools in Responding to Immigration Issues | California Attorney General: Discusses procedures for local education agencies to respond to actions and requests for information by any law enforcement officer for purposes of enforcing immigration laws. Published 2024.
Defending Student Civil Rights
- Misguidance | Education Counsel: Analysis explaining how the DOJ’s Civil Rights illegitimate guidance restrains lawful DEI efforts and reminds education leaders to stay committed. Published 2025.
- Responses to 2025 Federal Actions & Communications | California Department of Education: Includes news releases that clarify the impacts of recent federal actions on California’s public schools and students while reinforcing students’ and families’ rights.
- Federal Support for English Learners Q&A | Education Law Center: Q&A that details English learners rights and funding sources and how these may be impacted by actions from the federal government. Published 2025.
- Taking the Reins: California's Leadership in the Wake of Federal Injustices | EdTrust West: Outlines threats from the federal government to public education and provides concrete strategies for California leaders to safeguard civil rights and funding. Published 2025.
- A Legal Advocacy Guide: Combatting Racial Discrimination and Censorship in K-12 Public Schools | National Center for Youth Law: Guide that equips advocates with civil rights guidance, landmark cases, and practical strategies to combat discrimination and censorship amid shifting federal policies.
- Navigating Federal Actions for California Kids and Families | Children Now: Extensive resource that lays out potential timing, process, and impact of the Trump Administration’s organized attack on public education. Updated 2025.
- Trump Administration Play-by-Play | Partnership for the Future of Learning: Extensive resource that lays out potential timing, process, and impact of the Trump Administration’s organized attack on public education. Updated 2025.
- Know Your Rights: My School My Rights | ACLU SoCal: Guide that helps California students understand their civil rights and liberties in school.
- Social Justice Resources | California Teachers Association: CTA resources to support racial justice, immigration and LGBTQ+ students, teaching social justice and more.
Resisting Censorship: Protecting the Freedom to Learn
- The Far-Right Attack on Education: How Curriculum and Classroom Censorship Stifles Educators, Harms Students and Threatens Our Democracy | American Oversight: Report that exposes the concerted efforts of far-right politicians and activists to undermine public education, harm students and educators, and weaken democracy through censorship.
- Unite Against Book Bans Action Toolkit | American Library Association: Toolkit with resources to help communities, advocates, school board members counter book bans in schools and libraries and support the freedom to read.
- Educational Gag Orders in Your Community: A Tip Sheet for Changing the Conversation | PEN America: Checklist with actionable steps to combat educational gag orders to help individuals protect free expression, academic freedom, and students’ right to learn in and about their communities.
- Freedom to Learn | National Education Association: Campaign advocating for students’ rights to an honest and accurate education with resources for community engagement and school board advocacy.
- Teach Truth Media Guide | Zinn Education Project: Media guide with key statements, FAQs, media engagement strategies, and outreach recommendations to support effective communication around the importance of an accurate and honest education. Updated 2024.
- Southern Education Equity Network School Resource Hub: We All Belong | Intercultural Development Research Association: Lesson plans, teaching tools, and policy updates to support educators and advocates promote a culturally relevant education and fight harmful censorship practices.
- Providing Relevant, Inclusive Support that Matters for LGBTQ+ Students | PRISM California: Professional development program for California educators on LGBTQ+ cultural competency to foster inclusive classrooms in grades 7-12.
Toolkits & Messaging to Organize Communities
- Community Schools Impact on Student Outcomes: Evidence From California | Learning Policy Institute: Report that finds California’s $4.1 billion community school investment significantly improved outcomes, especially for historically underserved populations. Published 2025.
- California Youth & Families Speak: The Schools Students Need to Learn and Thrive | California Partnership for the Future of Learning: Listening report that amplifies communities call for safe, inclusive, and well-resourced schools among federal attacks on public education and civil rights. Published 2025.
- Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA) Toolkit | Alliance to Reclaim our Schools: Toolkit that equips advocates with fact sheets, data, messaging, and actions to help stop the billionaire-backed voucher scheme and protecting funding for public schools.
- Project 2025 Tracker: Community driven tracker that follows the progress of and provides updates to the policy goals stated in Project 2025 that can help us prepare for what’s to come.
- Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA) Toolkit | Alliance to Reclaim our Schools
Toolkit that equips advocates with fact sheets, data, messaging, and actions to help stop the billionaire-backed voucher scheme and protecting funding for public schools. - Uniting Our Communities for Strong Schools and a Multiracial Democracy | Race Forward: HEAL Together: Toolkit with resources to help public school advocates counter attacks on critical race theory, LGBTQ+ people, and culturally relevant education in school districts. Published 2023.
- Public School Strong Self-Directed Orientation | HEAL Together: Orientation designed to give organizers the tools needed to become part of a movement to defend and strengthen our public schools, including resources to connect and organize in your local school district with the potential to impact at state and national levels. Updated 2025.
- Ending the School Culture Wars | The School Superintendents Association: Article highlighting how progressive coalitions of parents, students, and community members are successfully pushing back against extremist school board policies and defending inclusive public education in California and nationwide. Published 2024.
- Defending Our Schools and Students | California Teachers Association: Stories and lessons learned from school districts where communities came together to push back against bigoted school board members. Published 2023.
- The Fierce Urgency of Now: Messages that Advance Diversity and Equal Opportunity | The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights: Messaging guidance and strategies to counter attacks on DEI and advance equal opportunity for all. Updated 2025.
- Summary and Analysis of Trump Administration Executive Actions Impacting Education | Education Counsel: Trump administration executive actions tracker with summaries and analyses
