Splitting up the thriving, healthy, and cost-effective community at Lowell School makes absolutely no sense, not by any of the criteria spelled out by the District for this process.

The parents and children of Lowell are united in our emphatic, heartfelt desire to keep our community intact. Our children should not be the backs upon which the District carries itself out of the latest budget crisis.

The proposed split will, in point of fact, end up costing rather than saving the School District money. The simple bottom line is this: in the face of the budget shortfall, it is not the right time to begin duplicating services for any program or population.

I will outline them here:

Splitting Lowell school is in direct, specific conflict with the recommendation of the recent APP Review commissioned by the District.

Splitting our school violates own Board Policy D12.00, regulating the expansion of self-contained program sites.

Splitting our school will increase transportation costs.

Splitting our school in this slapdash fashion will drive even more families out of the School District.

Splitting our school will, without question, increase infrastructure costs, making it more expensive to deliver the same services to the same children.

But most of all, splitting up Lowell School utterly and willfully ignores one of the most insightful and hard-earned lessons of Dr. John Stanford himself.

The District has been down the road the proposed split represents before, at Madrona. Dr. Stanford took the time to learn first-hand that is was a mistake to co-house those populations, and he was unafraid to take the bold action required to correct it. He founded Lowell School. Lowell is part of Dr Stanford's genius, his insight.

It would be tragic to allow the District haphazardly undo what Stanford's courage, leadership, and hard work created for our special-needs children.

Stacey Devenney

Parent and West Seattle resident