A Texas elementary school has banned parents from entering inside the school when picking up or dropping off their kids, leaving many parents furious at the inconvenience.
In September, Bear Branch Elementary School issued a policy forbidding parents from going inside the school building to drop off or retrieve their children, restricting parents to moving within the pick-up lane.
The rules created a log-jam of traffic, as parents waited for lengthy periods of time for kids to come out and find their ride. Some parents rebelled, intentionally breaking the rules.
“People start lining up here about 2:30 p.m. for a 3:25 p.m. dismissal,” Jeff Wendinger, a parent, told KPRC-TV.
In response to the violations, principal Holly Ray threatened the parents who continued to walk their children home from school with criminal charges of trespassing,
Parents have started to remove their children from the school over this issue.
“She’s threatening to arrest people,” mother Wendy Jarman, who has pulled her children from Bear Branch, told KRIV. “This has happened to many parents. They have been cited. They have been threatened, if they step one foot on school property, they will be arrested and charged with who knows what.”
Some students have received in-school suspensions after their parents picked them up from the building, Breitbart reports.
The policy is especially grating for many families who live within walking distance of the school, to whom the rule also applies.
A spokesperson for the school district said that the policy was issued over safety concerns, since the school was located next to a highway.
Hundreds of people have signed a petition urging the school to reverse its no pick-up policy.
