Washington state school district halts international trips

A school district in Washington state has halted all international field trips over concerns students in the country illegally wouldn't be able to get back in.

The Kent School District's Board of Directors announced the decision Wednesday, The Seattle Times reported. The decision immediately canceled an education exchange to Osaka, Japan, and a band trip to Victoria, British Columbia, in Canada.

District spokesman Chris Loftis said confusing messages from President Donald Trump's administration caused uncertainty about whether students would be allowed back into the U.S.

"You cannot go on a field trip with 60 kids and come back with 59," he said.

The school district said it has students from 100 countries who speak 135 languages.

The district doesn't track students' immigration status because of a 1982 US Supreme Court decision that says it's unconstitutional to deny children in the country illegally a free and public education, Loftis said.

But when a school official called U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency said there was a very high chance a student would be detained at the border if the student lacked information needed to get back in, Loftis said.

"Immigration laws have not changed," the agency said in a statement. "In accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, all travelers seeking to enter the United States must prove to the inspecting officer that they are legally entitled to enter the United States."

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)