Community members on Wednesday night called for the removal of a Fresno Unified substitute teacher who was recorded questioning students’ immigration status.

Members of the public called for the teacher’s firing at the School Board meeting.

Expressing disappointment, they demanded that the substitute Spanish teacher — identified as Craig Cleveland — not teach in Fresno Unified again.

Audio of Cleveland questioning how long students have lived in the United States and speaking about green cards was posted online Feb. 5.

Related Story: Fresno Unified Substitute Questions Students About Immigration Status

Cleveland, in an interview with Univision, said the clips were taken out of context and he didn’t intend to offend anyone.

Cleveland added that he was simply trying to discuss the current challenges immigrants face under President Donald Trump.

Stacy Williams, a Fresno Barrios Unidos board member, shared a student statement with trustees.

“The recordings were not out of context, and nobody got the wrong idea of what he said. … What he was saying made people really uncomfortable. Especially when he was asking the class if they had immigration cards,” the anonymous student said.

In a public statement, the district said that the questions and comments were “unacceptable.”

District officials said they wouldn’t identify the substitute teacher or discuss the teacher’s employment status due to privacy laws and to ensure due process.

“I’m very disappointed that the incident happened. My staff and I are not going to stand by and allow that to happen to our students,” Interim Superintendent Misty Her said.

Fresno Unified Assures Safety is Top Priority

Public comment carried a central message: Students need to feel safe in classrooms.

Cleveland told Univision that he was talking to the district and hoped to return to the classroom.

However, Williams told the Board that the community will not stand for that.

Board meeting speakers read multiple anonymous student statements. Those talking shared that the students were fearful of appearing in front of the School Board and reporting these kinds of incidents to school personnel.

“That pains me,” Trustee Andy Levine said, “We need students, on immigration and otherwise, to know that we have their back and that they can feel safe around adults on their campus.”

The district encourages students and families to notify “trusted adults” in these situations.

Levine says the district will launch an anonymous hotline for students to report incidents that may be uncomfortable to talk about in person.

“When you hear something, you see something, that’s not right, bring it to our attention. We’re going to take care of it,” Her said.

Levine said there is a heightened level of fear and anxiety due to Trump’s mass deportation efforts.

“We, as a district, are going to do everything we possibly can to protect our students and our families. … We will not corporate with ICE. ICE cannot come on to campus absent of a signed judicial warrant,” Levine said.

The district requires staff to go through diversity training.

“Any adult that might be around students or just involved in our system needs to go through those (diversity) trainings. And so, that’s on a regular basis,” Levine said.

Her says that the district can’t control every person’s action, but it can “uphold and have processes and procedures in place to ensure that we do everything we can to prevent it from happening again.”

Staff must put aside any personal opinions in the classroom and educate all students, Her said.

“Now is not the time to put a Band-Aid. Now is the time to set a precedent for what prevention actually can look like. For all students,” public commenter Alex Ramos-O’Casey told the Board.