Pro-Trump spray-painter at CA Spanish-immersion school at large

An unknown vandal spray-painted huge pro-Trump messages on the walls of Spanish-language Cali Calmecac Language Academy in Windsor recently. An unknown vandal spray-painted huge pro-Trump messages on the walls of Spanish-language Cali Calmecac Language Academy in Windsor recently. Photo: Google Maps / Google Maps Photo: Google Maps / Google Maps Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Pro-Trump spray-painter at CA Spanish-immersion school at large 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Days after a vandal spray-painted imposing graffiti reading “build the wall higher” and dozens of other references to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a Spanish-language immersion school in Sonoma County, teachers and administrators are trying to calm their shaken classrooms.

Whoever defaced the public Cali Calmecac Language Academy in Windsor is still at large, said Principal Jeanne Acuña, adding that security cameras at the school didn’t capture images of the attack.

Eighteen-inch high Pro-Trump messages were sprayed on walls, ceilings, trashcans and doors, Acuña said.

“I was angered by it when I first heard it,” Acuña said, adding that she’s worked at the school for 25 years. “It was like a gut punch. It was an emotional moment, to say the least. It felt like, ‘Why would someone come to my house and do this to my kids?’”

The Windsor Police Department is investigating the “offensive and disrespectful” incident, Chief Carlos Basurto, said in a statement. And an insurer for the school is offering a $500 reward for any information leading to an arrest and a conviction, Acuña said.

“It is extremely upsetting that the children had to be subjected to such hatred and bigotry,” Basurto said.

Acuña said she hopes the responsible party was just “a teenager with a stupid prank,” rather than an adult, which would be a “whole different story.” But even if it was a prank, that changes little, Basurto said.

“Whether this was a prank or not does not diminish its effect on the emotions of the children of that school or the people of this community,” Basurto said.

About 75 percent of students at the K-8 school are Latino, and for the older students especially, the vandalism comes as a real-life symbol of anti-immigrant election rhetoric that this time hit much too close to home, Acuña said.

But as public employees of the state of California, teachers and administrators are stuck in the “uncomfortable position” of being able to condemn the vandalism, but not Trump’s rhetoric that many in the community claim egged on the incident, Acuña said.

“It is a slippery slope, and this year more so than any other year,” Acuña said. “We as public employees, teaching on public land, we can inform and educate. But we can’t advocate.”

Cali Calmecac has seen “such a positive backlash” since the vandalism, Acuña said, with letters of solidarity and support pouring in from other schools all over and fans at a rival basketball game holding up banners condemning the incident.

“It’s been amazinb,” Acuña said.

A representative from the Sonoma County Republican Party did not immediately return a request for comment.

“Donald Trump did not become a racist until he ran for President,” wrote Chair Edelweiss Geary on the organization’s website. “Before that everyone of whatever color loved him and wanted his money.”

Michael Bodley is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mbodley@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @michael_bodley