A recent controversy has emerged from a middle school in Minnesota, where eighth-grade students were reportedly exposed to a lesson that portrays Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in a controversial light. According to documents released by a conservative education group, the lesson included claims about ICE’s “tricky & violent tactics” used against thousands of “legal immigrants.”
These revelations came to light through Defending Education, which published sections of a PowerPoint presentation from Hermantown Middle School, located outside Duluth. The slideshow, presented during a geography class, aimed to provide students with perspectives on ICE actions, including the assertion that ICE agents have “gone too far” in their enforcement measures.
One slide from the presentation claimed that “some use tricky & violent tactics,” highlighting that 22 individuals had died in ICE custody as of 2025. It also mentioned lapses such as not filing paperwork to track arrests and wearing masks to conceal identities.
Further, the presentation alleged that ICE had “arrested &/or harassed thousands of LEGAL immigrants and 170 US citizens,” with some reportedly experiencing harsh treatment including being “dragged, tackled, beaten, tased and shot.”
To encourage further exploration of the topic, the teacher offered students extra credit for watching videos depicting “inhumane” conditions in migrant detention centers, as well as other ICE operations.
The materials sparked concern among parents, leading one to share them with the conservative group for wider dissemination. In response, Hermantown’s principal defended the educational content through an email, asserting that the lesson plan was consistent with Minnesota’s educational standards.
“All of our social studies classes have a current events component to them and this information is part of the MN standards in geography,” wrote the school official, whose name was redacted from the message.
It’s unclear whether the PowerPoint also covered the arrests of thousands of convicted criminals who had been illegally residing in Minnesota.
One slide also noted the Trump administration was shelling out “$170 billion taxpayer dollars to hire 20,000+ additional I.C.E. agents to find and deport them.”
“Why don’t undocumented immigrants just apply to come here legally?” another slide asked, before answering, “there aren’t enough ‘slots.’”
“Our staff strive to share both viewpoints on an issue,” Hermantown Community Schools Superintendent Wayne Whitwam told The Post in a statement. “[Defending Education] is showing one side, but for example doesn’t include a pro-ICE video shared by the same teacher.”
Whitwam declined to share any “pro-ICE” content from the lesson, saying in an email: “I don’t want to feed this story.”
The superintendent did share guidelines from the Minnesota Association of School Administrators, which include admonitions to focus on “education, not advocacy,” “respect all viewpoints,” “support civil discourse,” and “know your role.”
Instructors are also advised not to engage in political debate with students or use the classroom for “personal political messages” or to “display partisan materials.”
“It’s bad enough that this biased lesson is replete with falsehoods — but [for] the school principal to defend such garbage truly adds insult to injury,” said Nicole Neily, the founder and president of Defending Education, in a statement.
“Students are being force-fed ideological propaganda during finite lesson time (when they’re not being encouraged by activist teachers to walk out of their classrooms, that is) and told what to think, rather than how to think. It’s little wonder that families are fleeing the public education system in droves.”
President Trump’s border czar Tom Homan announced the end of a federal surge of thousands of immigration officers to Minnesota earlier this month — after fatal shootings of two anti-ICE demonstrators forced a shake-up.
Operation Metro Surge recorded more than 4,000 arrests and the recovery of 3,364 unaccompanied migrant children, said Homan, who claimed the Biden administration had stopped even “looking for” the lost kids.
Homan highlighted how the arrests included an illegal immigrant convicted of raping a child under the age of 14, as well as other “criminal aliens” convicted of sexual misconduct and violence.
The drawdown announced by Homan followed weeks of clashes between the feds and far-left demonstrators — and rhetorical spats between Democratic officials and the Trump administration — in the Twin Cities over deportations.
The controversy made international headlines Jan. 7 when Renee Good, 37, was shot and killed by an ICE officer as she accelerated her car in his direction after being stopped and asked to exit the vehicle.
Alex Pretti, also 37, was gunned down by Border Patrol and Customs and Border Protection agents Jan. 24 after refusing to clear a roadway and getting into a “struggle” while carrying a loaded pistol.
Both killings are under federal investigation, though Minnesota officials have also called for state probes.
Other Department of Homeland Security officers have also been probed for misconduct. Two were put on administrative leave in February after giving false statements to a federal court about a migrant-involved shooting incident Jan. 14 in Minneapolis.
Good and Pretti were participants in “ICE Watch” groups that tracked immigration officers to flag when arrests were being made.
ICE Watch proponents have maintained they are exercising their right as “legal observers” and emphasized they do not encourage confrontation with law enforcement.
The Trump administration and Republicans have criticized such groups’ tactics for disrupting law enforcement — and put out statistics showing an alarming rise in anti-ICE violence, assaults on officers and destruction of federal property.
