I would like to respond to the letter written by Lucille Vasikauskas, Levittown School District Zoning, which appeared in the Aug. 31 Levittown Tribune.

My children are currently zoned for Wisdom Lane School.

My letter speaks of zoning in Levittown School District being the same for all children.

Children should be able to continue with their classmates with whom they have become academically and socially close to in forwarding to their middle school. Abbey Lane's split presents a big problem for some and no problem for others. I am happy to hear Mrs. Vasikauskas' children first were able to stay with their siblings, and that their transition into middle school was a smooth and successful one. Mrs. Vasikauskas by being a part of the 1998 group certainly was a influential part of making this so, otherwise if it would not have made a difference where her children went - why be a part of the group? I feel shortchanging your child is when you are not involved.

I have one child currently entering eighth grade at Wisdom Lane, one child entering sixth grade and another in the fourth grade at Abbey Lane. I speak from experience when I say the story of my child who has completed two years at Wisdom Lane has not been a successful one regarding academics and general happiness. We are a very social family, my child sees familiar faces in his school. We too like many families in Levittown are very active in our church, through community service, baseball, cheerleading, swim teams and the kids were little in the great soccer program. Abbey Lane School is the only elementary school in this school district like this. The board of education and what seems to be Mrs. Vasikauskas' opinion is that an elementary school friend or a best friend from elementary school should be easy to replace if you are more capable of change and more social. Five other schools don't have any one child who has to do this - why should we at Abbey. I, because of my experience, strongly feel my child's academic well-being has been affected by this separation. Although he has met and continues to meet very nice kids which is inevitable and always encouraged and he sees children he knows through being active in the community - it does not make up for what he is missing - and had to give up in a school environment - best friends. Of course he would probably not be in the same class with and maybe not even at lunch but he could still be a part of the same school and do after school and school things with them.

For some reason my kids closest friends live on the south side of town - and although I love them and their families it is annoying to have been attending the only school that split.

I have never once mentioned the level of education as an issue. I live down the block from Wisdom Lane - of course I would love my kids to go to school right there. But clearly with one of my children - academically, socially and emotionally he is missing what our Educational Philosophy in Levittown says it promotes. Why should any other child in Levittown or their parents have to not see their child be successful because of Abbey Lane's situation.

I am not looking to undo what was done in the decision of 1998. This past May I was at an Abbey Lane PTA meeting with questions regarding classrooms being added on to Abbey Lane School. I did not know that this construction on Abbey had already been approved in the budget. I actually am looking to find out exactly when it was approved. I thought it was still on the wish list for the school. I expressed in front of several people at the meeting that I felt classrooms if they needed to be added anywhere I thought Gardiners Avenue would be a better choice. That way all of the children attending Abbey that go to Salk anyway would start out say in the 2008-09 school year at Gardiners Avenue and this split would be no more than a couple of years from now. Not to mention at least five classrooms would open up at Abbey with these children starting at Gardiners instead.

Because construction is already started at Abbey and I am sensitive to taxpayers already paying enough money for taxes, an added project such as adding classrooms to Gardiners although I think it would have been a better choice than adding them to Abbey - would not be a good idea if taxes would then have to go up even more.

So this is what I have proposed to the Levittown Board of Education - The few children affected by this split at Abbey would if this is approved hopefully have a greater chance at obtaining "Success for Each and Every Student just as what is experienced for each and every child in Levittown School District."

In reading the Educational Philosophy in the Levittown School District's Policy - I find it admirable that the board of education encourages parents and staff to offer their expertise in helping to develop a school environment that is academically challenging, psychologically satisfying and socially fulfilling for students at all levels as stated. The objectives this philosophy states of an educational program are best realized when mutual understanding, cooperation, and effective communications exist between the home, community and school, which is written and I believe very much to be true.

The board of education of the Levittown Union Free School District states in their intradistrict policy that students entering or continuing their last two years of high school, may request to remain in their current school in the event of an address change to an alternate attendance zone within the Levittown School District.

Based on information in the two policies mentioned above I am requesting that the board of education add to their intradistrict policy and allow students in the Levittown Union Free School District to be academically challenged, psychologically satisfied and socially fulfilled by continuing upon request on the last day of their sixth-grade year only - their education in a Levittown middle and high school with the students they previously graduated from their Levittown elementary school with, inclusive of every elementary school in Levittown zoned for two middle schools.

I feel after one year of being at your new school - you should be comfortable. Successful in school hopefully and adjusted. If that is not the case on this last day of sixth grade if requested - I am asking that after spending that one school year at the middle school a child is zoned to go to - a transfer to the alternate middle school be granted, to forward with their classmates that they graduated from their elementary school with, who were zoned for this alternate school.

Mary Patricia Morra