Chelsea Public Schools has told families it is adding extra staff at pickup and drop-off after reports of increased ICE presence near school campuses and in neighborhoods across the city. Superintendent Almi Abeyta said the move is meant to help students and families feel safe at the end of the school day, even as accounts differ over exactly how close federal agents came to school grounds.
District Notice Follows Days Of Unease
According to CBS Boston, the district said in a statement that it remains committed to student, family, and staff safety amid heightened immigration enforcement, acknowledging that the presence of agents creates fear and uncertainty for many families. The notice came after staff and community members began reporting more sightings of agents around Chelsea, including near schools and routes where kids walk home.
Accounts of just how close those agents got are not fully consistent. GBH reported that a district notice described ICE agents operating in parts of Chelsea but said agents had not been close to schools. Yet NBC Boston reported that Abeyta told them her staff had firsthand knowledge of agents near some public schools on a recent Wednesday — a conflict between the two accounts that remains unresolved.
Extra Staff, Soft Lockdowns, And Limits On Agency Requests
NBC Boston reported that the district has stationed extra staff at dismissal, with Abeyta saying, “We have extra staff at dismissal … and that builds trust.” The station also reported that a handful of students were absent the Thursday after families were notified of the reported activity.
Per WCVB, the district said schools will implement soft-lockdown procedures if enforcement activity occurs near school buildings, and that any request from an immigration enforcement office to enter a school will be forwarded to the superintendent’s office for review. The district also said it will not release information from pupil records to federal agencies without a parent or guardian’s permission or a specific legal mandate, and that it follows guidance from the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office and does not coordinate with ICE.
ICE, for its part, denied targeting schools, with NBC Boston reporting the agency characterized claims suggesting otherwise as a false narrative. The network noted that ICE did not clarify whether agents had been near the specific pickup and drop-off locations the district had cited.
Community Group Describes Families In Crisis
The youth-focused nonprofit La Colaborativa, which supports Latinx immigrants in Chelsea, told NBC Boston it has been responding to an increase in reports of immigration enforcement activity across Chelsea and surrounding communities. The group’s involvement reflects a broader pattern of concern that has built in the city over the past year, even as the specific claims about school proximity remain disputed.
The city of Chelsea addressed the broader enforcement activity directly. In a statement, the City of Chelsea said that, to its knowledge, no Chelsea residents had been arrested even though ICE had temporarily operated within the city.
Legal Protections — And Their Limits
Chelsea Public Schools says it follows the state’s PROTECT Act, a Massachusetts law the district has cited as part of its guidance on handling federal enforcement requests. Under the statute enacted by the Massachusetts Legislature, civil law-enforcement arrests are not permitted on school grounds without a judicial warrant or judicial order, except where required by state or federal law or to administer a state- or federally supported program.
This is not the first time ICE activity has disrupted life in Chelsea. GBH reported that on March 18, 2025, ICE detained three men working for a painting company after agents stopped their van near Chestnut Street, prompting La Colaborativa to close for the day so staff could process what had happened. At the time, then-City Manager Fidel Maltez said Chelsea Police had been notified but did not take part in the federal action.
Enforcement activity in the city’s courts has also climbed sharply. GBH reported that Chelsea District Court recorded 57 ICE arrests in 2025, triple the 19 recorded in 2024, and that the broader court region that includes Chelsea saw 136 people detained last year. Those figures describe courthouse activity rather than school-area enforcement, but they underscore why reports of agents circulating near Chelsea neighborhoods have put families on edge.
