To the editor:

I am writing this as a plea to the citizens of Lawrence: Help us.

Help the schools, help the students, help the future. Voting against the bond issue will not save the schools. Unfortunately, they’ve already been set for closure. There is a lot of talk about not voting for the bond because of a lack of neighborhood schools. I attended Schwegler School, but I live in Prairie Meadows. The majority of Schwegler students live more than 2 miles from the school itself, and it was still considered our “neighborhood school.”

That’s not to say that closing the schools was a good idea: I understand completely how parents must feel. But I must press onward with the thought that if the school district had to close these schools because they didn’t have enough money before, and then on April 1, they don’t have money again, plus the state still hasn’t paid them … will we have any schools left? If one takes into consideration the poor condition of schools such as South Junior High School, or compares the facilities at Free State High School to the ones at Lawrence High School, one could see how unfair it is.

So I ask you, the citizens of Lawrence, if your neighborhood school was closed, vote yes on the bond so it doesn’t happen again. If your child’s school is new, all I can say is please help in sharing the wealth. And if you have no connection to the schools at all, I, a Lawrence High School sophomore, ask you to help us preserve the future of this city. Thank you, and I urge you to vote yes on the bond issue.

Alex Curnes,

Lawrence