A Georgetown University Law Center study finds that undocumented, immigrant children living here in the U.S. are routinely blocked from being able to register for school.

Researchers found among the many obstacles kids in the U.S. living without the benefit of legal status face are long enrollment delays and being regularly subjected to the arbitrary interpretations of school bureaucrats as it relates residency rules and state laws.

The report specifically focused on school districts in the states of Florida, New York, North Carolina and Texas. Compulsory education laws in all 50 states mandate that all children, undocumented immigrants among them, attend school until at least their 16th birthday or through eighth grade

Required Paperwork a Giant Hurdle for Many Families

Rules and regulations aside, researchers found the elaborate paperwork requirements that some districts have put in place have effectively closed the door on the educational pursuits of many immigrant youngsters.

In many cases, exacerbating the situation all the more are translation and interpretation barriers that have kept families in the dark about what course of action might be best to take on behalf of their children.

''US law is clear on this point -- no child in the United States should be excluded from public education,'' said Mikaela Harris, a Georgetown law student who co-wrote the study issued by the university's Human Rights Institute and the nonprofit Women's Refugee Commission. ''That doesn't always play out in practice.''

Making that reality even harder to come by are the ongoing deportations now being carried out by the Obama administration that have left many immigrants students hesitant about attending classes altogether over fear of being confronted by immigration agents.

''We remain vigilant about our responsibility to protect the civil rights of all students, including immigrant students, undocumented students, and unaccompanied immigrant students,'' Education Department spokeswoman Dorie Nolt said. ''We have provided a number of resources to communities in order to do so.''

While US Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) spokesman Bryan Cox refrained from commenting on the study directly, he emphasized that ICE policy largely prohibits agents from carrying out enforcement activities on school grounds or at other sensitive locations.

Pew Research Estimates Nearly 800,000 Kids Living in U.S. Without Authorization

Pew Research Center recently estimated that some 775,000 children under the age of 18 are now living in the U.S. without legal authority, and the reports claims to have analyzed the barriers an overriding number of them face.

Over the last three years alone, more than 100,000 unaccompanied children from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras also have sought refuge in communities across the U.S. Researchers add that an additional 1.6 million school-aged immigrant children who were brought to the United States legally may also live in mixed-status families and face similar barriers.

''Under federal law, schools are not allowed to discriminate against children due to their racial or ethnic background,'' the report said. ''And yet, some communities have barred immigrant children from enrolling or meaningfully participating in school by creating intentional and unintentional barriers.''

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