Schools across Canada are grappling with the uncertainty of U.S. travel restrictions and how upcoming student trips across the border might be affected.
A travel ban instituted by President Donald Trump on citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries and Syrian refugees may be on hold as it works its way through the justice system, but Canadian schools are still concerned with how foreign-born students will be treated at the border.
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The Sooke School District in British Columbia, which is home to some refugees, will debate the issue at a board meeting later this week.
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Superintendent Jim Cambridge says safety is a primary concern, but so is fairness to students who may be discriminated against or left behind at the border.
The Pembina Trails School Division in Winnipeg cancelled a trip after a track team was concerned when the travel ban was imposed that some of their peers would be left behind.
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Superintendent Ted Fransen says while the board hasn’t enacted rules in response to the U.S. travel ban, students and teachers in his district value inclusivity and wouldn’t consider going on a trip that wasn’t available to everyone.
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