4 Empinado Pl
Hot Springs, AR 71909

I am absolutely heartbroken and furious about my experience with Jessieville School in Arkansas. As a parent with full legal custody of my daughter, I showed up to pick her up, exercising my rights under Arkansas law where the custodial parent has clear authority for such pickups. The principal acted like she was going to help by saying she'd go get my daughter, but instead, she sneaky went and fetched my mom who works there as a paraprofessional and allowed her to call her lawyer right there on school grounds. Next thing I know, there's some electronically signed document being thrown in my face, blocking me from taking my own child home. This principal straight-up violated my parental rights by interfering, enabling a family member on staff to escalate a private dispute, and ignoring standard protocols that prioritize the legal custodian. Schools in Arkansas are supposed to facilitate smooth exchanges without disrupting the day or favoring one family member over another, especially when para staff might have insider access that creates conflicts of interest. She tore my family apart in the process. my son misses his sister terribly, and so do I. All this stemmed from my mom convincing me to uproot our lives and move to Arkansas, only to kick me and my son out, and when I tried to get my daughter the very next day, this stunt happened. It's even more concerning when personal family drama spills over into official duties like this.Parents, beware if you're sending your kids here. You never know when the principal might pull something like this on you, especially if a staff member like a para is involved in a custody tug-of-war, siding with the wrong person and ignoring legal custody. This school failed me and my family big time. STAY AWAY!