To the Editor:

The quality of public education, the dedication of teachers and staff, the level of involvement in the community demonstrated by the Princeton Public Schools are just extraordinary.

Charter School expansion will result in a significant drain on the PPS resources, and it pains me to think that the music programs, the field trips, and other activities that my kids and their classmates benefited from so much will necessarily be affected. The increasing enrollment in PPS in the last couple of years already strains the system, and this is not the time to put the taxpayer money elsewhere. The resource allocation resulting from this proposal will be unfair and will hurt a lot of children who deserve better, all for the sake of a small school that constitutes only a miniscule proportion of the town’s educational system.

While PPS is deeply integrated into the community, the Charter School exists in its own universe and contributes very little to the needs of those not attending it. The approach taken by the Charter School Board in submitting their proposal without any meaningful consultation with the PPS or any public discussion is an ample demonstration of this isolation.

It is my hope and the hope of the many concerned parents that the Department of Education will make the right choice, follow the line of arguments presented by the PPS Superintendent Steve Cochrane, and not approve the proposed expansion.

Anna Mendlin

Autumn Hill Road