Agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement took a parent into custody Friday morning after he dropped off his child, according to the school’s owner and another child’s parent.
“They took a dad,” Nivea, the parent, told the Idaho Statesman outside Mayra’s Spanish Preschool and Daycare, which is on the Boise Bench. Nivea asked that her last name not be used over concerns of retaliation.
According to school owner Mayra Ramirez and Nivea, several agents, some of whom were masked, used unmarked vehicles to block in the child’s father outside the school and didn’t allow him to leave. He wasn’t shown a warrant, but instead shown a picture of himself and asked if the image was him, they said.
When he and others, including Ramirez, asked the agents, who were identified as ICE, for an arrest warrant or detention order, the father was told not to mess with the agents, Ramirez and Nivea said. ICE didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The agents didn’t go inside the school, which cares for children aged 18 months to 5 years. But parents and teachers, many of whom are Latino, were scared for their own families, Ramirez and Nivea said. All children at Mayra’s Spanish Preschool and Daycare remained inside during the incident and classes continued Friday, they said.
Estefania Mondragón, executive director of PODER of Idaho, criticized the agents for not providing the man with a warrant.
Mondragón, who was informed of the incident by a parent, told the Statesman that ICE is “continuing to break the law” and called the agents’ choice to detain a father outside his child’s school “disgusting.” It sends a message that they’re there to racially profile, she said.
“They’re not going to Croatian schools. They’re not going to Bosnian schools,” Mondragón said by phone. “They’re going to a Spanish-language preschool — it sends a very clear message to who they are targeting.”
Boise School District, other Spanish-language schools respond to ICE activity
Since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, his administration has drastically cracked down on immigration violations nationwide. And, in recent weeks, as tensions have boiled over in response to the killing of several people by ICE agents, thousands of people throughout the country — including Idahoans— have taken to the streets to protest the violent tactics used by immigration agents.
As a part of the administration’s focus on immigration, they’ve also loosened polices and procedures for immigration officers, giving them more latitude over the way they arrest and detain people. This includes allowing immigration agents to detain people outside of protected areas, like schools.
In January 2025, the Trump administration rescinded a Biden-era policy that used to prohibit the arrest of people within 1,000 feet of those areas. Now the Department of Homeland Security policies say that enforcement actions “may occur” in or near those areas in limited circumstances.
An officer from the Boise Police Department responded to the school after a third party called, Haley Williams, a spokesperson for the agency, told the Statesman. There weren’t any other law enforcement agencies there when the officer arrived, she said.
“BPD was not involved with, or aware of, any arrests at that location,” Williams said by text.
At least two other Spanish-language schools in Boise sent notes to parents reassuring them that their staff members, many of whom are immigrants, all have proper documentation, according to one school’s director and a letter shared with the Statesman that was sent by another school.
In response to questions about reports of increased immigration enforcement activity, including Friday’s incident, the Boise School District sent an email to families reiterating that all students, regardless of immigration status, are entitled to a free public education, and that the school district doesn’t collect or maintain information about a student’s immigration status. Student records are also protected under a federal act and state law, the district said, and aren’t shared with immigration officials without proper legal authorization, like a court order.
“We remain committed to ensuring our schools are places where every student can learn, grow, and feel safe,” Superintendent Lisa Robert wrote in the email.
This story was written by Alex Brizee of the Idaho Statesman.