Students at Spring-Ford Area High School organized a demonstration in protest of  the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency on Feb. 11, walking out of class at 12:34 p.m. and carrying signs that criticized the agency. Approximately 150 students from grades 8-12 walked out of their respective buildings for the peaceful protest that Wednesday.

“We wanted to bring Spring-Ford together, and we wanted to get our message across that immigrants are people, and we’re here to speak up for them,” said Arriana Daramy, a senior and one of the student leaders for the protest. “We’re going to stand by them and we’re going to do everything that we can to make our community as safe as possible. Immigrants are people, and we’re going to treat them with the same respect that they treat us with.”

Since the protest was student-led and not district-sanctioned, several measures were taken to ensure student safety. Both the 9th and 10-12 Grade Centers operated as closed campuses from 12:15-1:45 p.m. on the day of the protest, preventing visitors from entering or exiting campus during that time. Additionally, administrators and the Spring-Ford Police Department helped ensure student safety during the protest. Students returned to campus and finished the school day in their seventh-period classes following the event.

“Students were asked to sign in upon their return,” Spring-Ford Interim Superintendent Dr. Jim Scanlon said in a message to the district after the protest Wednesday. “Students who were not excused prior to the start of class were marked as an unexcused absence and will receive demerits in accordance with Board Policy 218. Students who chose not to participate remained in class and continued with normal instruction. The campus reopened to visitors at 1:30 p.m. and all operations returned to normal.”

School officials recognized the importance of student voices being shared both individually and as a student body and respected students’ right to free speech, however the walkout was not a district-sanctioned event due to safety concerns.

“As an administrative team, we are sensitive to the many thoughts and feelings our students have about issues both locally and nationally,” said Scanlon in a district message prior to the protest. “Respectful student expression is something we want to support and even encourage. However, we must also adhere to district guidelines and policies.”

Student protesters are hopeful that their message was heard.

“I definitely think we did get our message across,” Daramy said. “It’s just more so now waiting to feel the impact. And there’s still so much more to do, we hope we can spark some legislative changes.”

Daramy, one of the three student leaders who helped organize and carry out the anti-ICE protest, shared how it went from idea to action.

“I think that seeing everything going on around us and with ICE getting closer and a lot of immigrants in the community are scared and people are having to carry documentation on them,” Daramy said. “I couldn’t just sit by and do nothing.”

The walkout was the chosen form of protest as it aligned with the other high schools across the state like North Penn and Phoenixville. Other schools in the area have held similar protests as well. A key for the Spring-Ford protestors was an open dialogue with administration of their plans.

“I learned that it is easier to work with people than you think, and that more people are willing to help if you just ask,” Daramy said. “The administration is willing to work with students and help them, you just have to ask. It was easy and as long as everyone communicated everything was good. The administration just wants to keep everybody safe.”

Seth Jones, 12th Grade House Principal, was among the administrators who held dialogue with student leaders. Administration focused on student safety above all else.

“We were able to provide support for the protest so students remained safe, and there was no involvement or interruption from the outside community,” Jones said. “After the protest, students went straight back into their education.

“By communicating with student leaders and the community, we were able to work together and devised the safest plan.”

Students who left the building were not safe from disciplinary action, though. Students who left the building to join the protest were to be given five demerits by district policy in the handbook.

“The school itself can’t support (protests like this), but protects,” said Jones. “And as a house principal it was my job to explain the policy to students, but it is their choice. …

“Overall, I would say as a school Spring-Ford handled the situation well. Students walked out and came back, there were no injuries, no significant disruptions to the school day. So, I would say we had the best possible outcome and that everything was represented accurately and the overall message was portrayed well.”

Several high schools in the area also conducted walkouts protesting ICE recently, including North Penn and Phoenixville the week before Spring-Ford’s protest and Quakertown the following week. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that police arrested five Quakertown students following a confrontation off campus with police the day of the protest.