Parents of a kindergartner at Van Wert Elementary School say they are demanding answers from the Polk County Board of Education about why the girl’s father remains banned from the school.

Louis and Angela Arant said they will be approaching board members in their meeting next Tuesday to talk face-to-face about the situation. The Polk School District Board of Education meets at 6:30 p.m. at the central office on South College Street.

The decision to attend the meeting comes after an email to board members, phone calls to school officials and a certified letter demanding a response, the Arants said.

They said they have hired attorneys as well.

Louis Arant has been banned from Van Wert Elementary since Sept. 24, when Principal Sherrie Cox issued a criminal trespass complaint against him. Polk County School Superintendent Marvin Williams said it was a joint decision between himself and Cox.

The Arants said school officials have overstepped their bounds and are causing severe distress in their family. They also said school officials have never offered a clear reason for the ban.

Louis Arant said this school year started out typically with their youngest child, Julie, 5, starting school. Arant is a stay-at-home dad because of a physical disability, while Mrs. Arant works. They have an older daughter in Rockmart Middle School as well and their oldest daughter works at a local fast-food restaurant.

Because of the family situation, Arant actively participates in the girls’ school functions and deals with any educational issues. He said he was taking Julie to school when he noticed something was wrong with the safety of student drop off and pick up.

"The first time, my daughter almost ran out in traffic," he said.

At that time, the new school had two lanes of traffic letting students out and picking them up. Arant said students were going between parked cars. He said there was a second instance where his daughter could have been hit by a car inching forward.

That is when he approached the principal.

"I told them that if they keep doing this with these little kids, someone is going to get hurt," he said.

Arant then talked to Buddy Harrison with the Polk County Board of Education and to Williams after that, but the couple said it seemed to fall on deaf ears. Mrs. Arant said she talked with Cox also, was told that their opinions were welcomed and either was allowed to observe the drop-off and pick-up to note any safety issues.

Arant said he decided to accept the invitation to observe Sept. 24 after he dropped his daughter off at the school door. He said he parked in a separate lot to avoid a traffic problem, leaned up against a wall to watch while talking to his wife on his cell phone.

According to Arant, the vice principal approached him, accused him of taking pictures of children and ordered him to leave before police were called. Arant said he left, but was given the criminal trespass citation by Rockmart Police Chief Keith Sorrells later.

Arant said he never took any pictures and offered his cell phone to school officials to check. He said they refused.

School officials are, for the most part, mum about the incident saying it is a confidential school matter. However, both Cox and Williams said it wasn’t a matter to be taken lightly.

"I been a school administrator for 13 years," Cox said. "I’ve never had to ban a parent from school. It’s pretty unique."

Sorrells said this is the first time he has issued a criminal trespass warning for a parent at a school. He said such warnings are typically issued against a shoplifter to prevent them from returning to a store.

The police report from the incident leading to the ban states Arant caused a disturbance or problems "almost every morning since school started." Some of the accusations levied in the report are that he has blocked traffic, standing in front of the school, ranting and yelling.

The report states the situation was worsening because parents were not leaving the school after dropping off their kids until Arant left.

The Arants claim details listed in the report are false. They said Arant had dropped off his daughter 12 times from the beginning of school until the Sept. 24 incident, with his wife sharing the responsibility, so he wasn’t there every day. He also denies other allegations, stating he parked in an adjacent lot and walked his daughter to the school to ensure her safety in the traffic.

Cox said in an interview that Arant did park elsewhere, didn’t routinely hang around the school, didn’t yell or use profanity and didn’t pose a physical threat to anyone. Cox declined to say exactly what Arant did to warrant a ban other to say it was a "safety issue."

"Some parents can become very angry and not use profanity, but another parent sees it and makes them think their child is unsafe," she said.

Williams also said Arant wasn’t involved in any physical altercation, didn’t threaten anyone, didn’t use vulgarity, wasn’t carrying a weapon and wasn’t yelling.

"I just expect a certain type of behavior on school property," he said, adding that he has discussed this with the school board and they support him in the decision.

Williams said there wasn’t a specific board policy outlining what behavior would get a parent banned from a school. In this instance, it was a discretionary matter, he said.

The Arants said this is posing a real logistic problem for them. As it is, the oldest daughter has had to pick up their 5-year-old because the couple doesn’t feel she is old enough to ride the bus. So, their oldest has to take off from work to go pick up her sister.

Scheduling changes at work will result in the child leaving school 30 minutes early every day, which the Arants fear will lead to a truancy issue.

Meanwhile, the school has changed the way parents drop off and pick up their children. Williams said parents are directed to drive in a single lane in the morning and two lanes in the afternoon. The change is safer because it is dark in the morning when kids arrive, Williams said.

The Arants said they are happy for the change and that it proves Arant was raising valid concerns.