Two self-contained special education classes at Broadview-Thomson Elementary School will close at the end of the school year due to low enrollment, Seattle School District officials have decided.

The district's yearly evaluation of it's special education programs revealed a decrease in special needs enrollment at the school, forcing the decision to consolidate those students into programs at Northgate, Olympic Hills and Olympic View elementary schools, said Patti Spencer, a district spokesperson.

A first and second-grade class and a third through fifth-grade class, which serve about 13 students total with various special needs, will close. About 10 families are affected, said Jeanne Smart, the school's principal.

"There just weren't enough students to populate the classes," Smart said. "We never like to disrupt our families and we try to minimize that for our students."

One class is serving as few as five students, she said.

"The reality is that there's a small number of students in these classrooms," said Spencer.

The school still has several special programs, including Spectrum and English language learners. It will also begin an Autism All Inclusion program when Viewlands Elementary merges with the school next year.

During the two-week review of the programs, the district looked at enrollment trends and budgetary needs to figure out what areas of the city needed more or less special education. Significant under enrollment is expected in West Seattle so Alki and Schmitz Park general special education classes were also cancelled. Other West Seattle schools will absorb those students.

After the decision to close the classes was made in mid-March, impacted staff and families were immediately notified, Spencer said. She said the district recognizes that moving or closing special programs can be especially difficult for the parents and students of special needs families.

"We realize it's very challenging for families to make these changes and we make every attempt to minimize that," said Spencer. "We're looking at special education more comprehensively and we really want to make sure we use our resources to bring the most benefit to our children with special needs."

Families will be sent letters explaining the decision and a new assignment plan for each student. Parents will be given the opportunity to appeal those assignments. Typically, the district tries to match special needs students with schools closest to their homes.

Parents will also be given the opportunity to tour the schools and "get to know the programs," said Spencer.

Since there are programs in the north end that can absorb the displaced students at elementary and higher grade levels, Spencer said it isn't known whether the programs could be reinstated at Broadview-Thomson.

Moving students around is something the district wants to avoid whenever possible, said David Tucker, another district spokesperson.

"We really want to minimize the disruption to student's lives and education," he said.

Rebekah Schilperoort can be reached at rebekahs@robinsonnews.com