LINDEN-Concerned parents and supporters of John Essex High School approached the Marengo County School Board Thursday afternoon to discuss some of the problems they have noticed with the school. One of the biggest concerns of the parents has been the presence of snakes in and around the school.

Marengo County School Superintendent Luke Hallmark said they have looked into the snake problem.

“I know that we had talked to a gentleman in North Alabama, but as far as getting someone other than local exterminators I don’t know,” Hallmark said. “A lot of them have told us that of we get rid of the rodent problem like mice and things like that they will move based on getting something to eat.”

Hallmark said they have also done some research on how to get the snakes out of the building and passed it on to the proper people.

“We have contacted a professional wildlife expert on various snake information,” Hallmark said. “They have passed the information on to the maintenance crew.”

Freda Randall, who represented the concerned parents of Essex, said they have come together as a group to see that the proper changes are made.

“We have a petition with quite a few signatures and we are still gathering signatures,” Randall said. “If the problems we have talked about are not addressed we will take it further.”

Mary Williams, another concerned parent, said she had children in the school who were afraid to attend.

“I have three children attending John Essex,” Williams said. “My little girl is hesitant about going to school and I know what the problem is.”

Williams also asked that some kind of professional be brought in.

“All we ask is that you have a professional check the school,” Williams said. “We are just concerned about the welfare of our children. That is all we are asking for.”

Randall said the group did not want to start problems; they simply wanted to look out for their students.

“We have to look out for our children,” Randall said. “We want a few things done to make the school better.”

The group asked for immediate inspection for snakes in and around the school for snakes. They also asked for asbestos inspections of the schools. The sealing of doors and some landscape work were also on the list.