Ramona school board member's comments on deporting immigrant students receives backlash

Families in the Ramona Unified School District expressed outrage after board member Maya Phillips made comments about the benefits of deporting “illegal aliens” during a meeting last week.

During the March 3 board meeting, Phillips, a representative of Area 1, said that the more “illegal aliens” or undocumented immigrants with children are deported from Ramona, the better the teacher-to-student ratio.

Phillips also added that deportations would represent economic savings for the district, since they would not have to hire more teachers to improve the teacher-student ratio.

This situation provoked a strong reaction on social media, where comments described Philips’ comments as “disgustingly atrocious and despicable,” and many are calling for her resignation.

The comments also say they want to hold the other representatives accountable for their silence.

A map obtained from the school district shows that Phillips represents the district with the largest Hispanic and immigrant population in Ramona. Nearly 51% of the population in District 1 is Hispanic, followed by District 3 at 26%. In addition, District 1 has 15% immigrants and 65% naturalized citizens.

Grandmothers of students in the district said they were hurt by the statements.

“Of course, of course, yes. Apart from the fact that this land was ours, right? From Mexico,” said Yolanda Morado, grandmother of students.

“Well, it makes me sad because, definitely, this country, even if they call us illegal, the United States took over what is ours,” said Estela Lucas, also a grandmother of seven students.

Morado expressed concern about the impact these comments could have on the community.

“Instead of helping us, she is going to knock us down,” Morado said.

Telemundo 20 tried to contact Phillips, but did not receive a response before publication.

The school district sent Telemundo 20 the following statement:

The Ramona Unified School District Board of Trustees and District leadership are aware that comments made by Board Member Phillips at the March 4 Board meeting have raised concerns in the community and questions from news media. These comments were made by Trustee Phillips in the portion of the meeting designated for individual board members’ comments. These comments were not made on behalf of the entire Board or the District.

Our School Board, teachers, staff and District work incredibly hard every day to create an educational environment that is safe, welcoming and non-judgmental for all students. We are also committed to complying with all laws and regulations regarding both the admission of students to our schools and in cooperation with law enforcement agencies. RUSD follows, and will continue to follow, all local, state and federal laws and seeks legal guidance as needed to remain in compliance.

This story was translated from Spanish with the help of AI tools. An NBC San Diego journalist edited this article for publication.