We are writing to you and the community concerning our principal, Tom Athanases, who is and has been a valuable asset to our school district and the children of this Valley. Last month, during an all-school meeting Tom informed us that he would no longer be our principal, starting next year.

Tom will be going to work in the district office. Teachers and students here at Two Rivers find it hard to cope with this situation, because of his integrity and dedication to the school.

Tom has been in alternative education for 32 years and here at Two Rivers for 24 years. And in some cases, Tom taught some of the parents of students who are attending Two Rivers today. We fear that the Snoqualmie Valley School District does not value our school as they do the other schools in the district, such as Mount Si High School. We say this because in the past year, we have had multiple things taken from our school such as phyical education. Our school lunches have been limited to cold sack lunches, and we also don’t have our independent classes or transportation for the students to get to and from field trips. However, Mount Si gets an extra cafeteria, new tennis courts, new portables, and a different variety of lunches to choose from, and when we asked our superintendent, he replied with, “The high school is expanding so we need more room.”

We understand what he is saying, but we are expanding, too, and to help Mount Si expand, we feel they are taking things away from us. Now we are losing Tom, the man who makes this school what it is. Why?

We feel like we have had a lot taken away in such little time. All of us at Two Rivers feel like we should at least be able to keep our principal. Tom plays a huge role in all students’ lives. If it wasn’t for Tom, a lot of the students wouldn’t be willing to try to get an education. We want the community and school district to realize just how important Tom is to all of us.

Danielle Clark and  Jordan Reed

Two Rivers School students