The Captain
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Post by The Captain on Jan 23, 2014 14:03:40 GMT -5
I can't believe I'm even starting to think about this. DD is 11. We have three more years to make up our minds.
In general the public schools in my area suck. The public high school that DD would have to attend has the following stats:
41% test at or above state standards 69% graduate within 4 years 73% are low income students 19% are english learners 14% are disabled and receive special services 26% of Seniors are ready for college coursework (score of 21 or higher on ACT of those who took the test). However the school has over 18 AP courses and has partnered with two of the local community college to allow students to start taking classes their senior year. The classes don't have to be college prep as I know kids who have graduated with coursework in welding, HVAC, and Lab Tech. There are definately pockets of excellent in the school.
The districts were redrawn not too long after we moved. We could move again but would have to totally change areas and have a huge mortgage and obscene RE taxes. Till now we've had DD in a private school. She's thriving there.
We have limited choices with private HS. If we go with one option, tuition, transportation, and fees will come to about $10K a year. DD will also be able to participate in after school actvities.
Over 90% test at or above state standards (office could not give me an exact number?) 98% graduate within 4 years 99% go on to higher education (2/3 to a traditional 4 year university) 10-13% receive some sort of financial assistance 80% of those taking the ACT scored a 21 or higher. No information on english learners or special services. Only 9 AP courses and they are sometimes too full to accept as many students as whom apply.
The second option has the same stats as the first option, but has twice as many AP classes, but is a 45+ minute bus ride one way. DD won't be able to participate in any after school actvities. Not an option really plus tuition etc. is $12K a year.
So I'm torn. DH wants to go to an open house at the first private school this weekend. I honestly don't even want to think about it yet.
What really sucks overall is that we DO have more options then some because we can afford private tuition. Local teachers' unions are fighting public charter schools tooth and nail because they don't want parents to have choices. It stinks.
Just rambling I guess.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 23, 2014 14:08:21 GMT -5
You have some time and things might change for the better but those public school stats are awful. It just isn't academics you need to think about. It's also environment. DD couldn't use the rest room for her 3 years of middle school. Just wasnt safe. DS was used as a battering ram in the hall of same school.
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milee
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Post by milee on Jan 23, 2014 14:20:42 GMT -5
Ugh, sorry you're dealing with this. The stats on your public school are not only bad, but I'd be worried about the peer group at a school like that. On the plus side, if that's what she ends up doing, the numerous AP offerings are a good thing (just check out the school's pass rate on those because some schools offer the classes but then most of the students don't pass the AP test, which is key.)
Go see both the private schools. You might find ways around the 45 minute/no activity thing - carpooling or something. It's worth it to get a feel for both the private schools. IMHO, the first private school will probably have a better peer group than the public school, but doesn't sound geared up to get the kids into really good colleges and it would be better if they offered more APs. Not sure on the second one, since the stats aren't listed.
Whatever you decide will have good points and bad points, just figure out which are most important for your family and live with/work around the stuff you can't control. Don't worry, it will be OK.
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on Jan 23, 2014 14:23:09 GMT -5
But, does the Public HS have a 'track' for high performing students and will your kid be interested in getting onto (and maintaining) that level of course work? FWIW: your kid will be exposed to 'bad influence' kids no matter which school they attend. It's been my experience that "private school" kids do all the same awful stuff that public school kids do - they are just more adept at hiding/covering up/maintaining an image than the public school kids. I'll also admit I'm a bit biased - since it seems that mostly the 'bad influence' kids from my extended family (and all the loser kids I went to Grade School with) went to Private High Schools. And, unfortunately, none of these people managed to 'straightened up and fly right' and if they did go on to college only a couple of them finished a 4 year degree.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 14:28:12 GMT -5
Do you know any people whose kids go to the public HS whose values/expectations are similar to yours? How are their kids doing?
I'm a bit prejudiced- after pretty much falling through the cracks in middle school, DS never even started at the local HS. I sent him to a military boarding school instead and it was worth every penny. DS says now that it was a difficult time in his life but that that school was what he needed. He's now out of college, has worked for the same company at a job he really likes for 4 years, owns a house and is happily married with a child on the way.
Our circumstances were a bit different- the public schools were considered excellent but just weren't working for DS, and in your case it sounds as if your DD needs a better school. Keep an open mind, and see what she thinks, too. She may have a better chance of succeeding when she "owns" the choice.
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justme
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Post by justme on Jan 23, 2014 14:28:53 GMT -5
Community college could be an alternative for either option. Maybe you could get the high school to allow her to dual enroll her junior year too (my hs did that). Or if she goes to the private school and the AP classes fill up maybe they will let you dual enroll.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 14:38:48 GMT -5
I feel for you. My son is 11 and I went through this ordeal of trying to decide between public and private last year (only we were going to start in Jr. High this Fall). I'd finally decided to go the private route, and now that it's within a month of registering I'm starting all over because I just don't think I can swing it financially anymore. Anyhow, I'm looking at the public closer and there are a lot of opportunities there. Like Speck stated there are separate tracks for what you're pursuing after high school and they do have a lot of AP and dual enrollment classes. The scores don't mean a lot when you consider they are taking all kids from various backgrounds. My big concern is he'll be surrounded by kids that aren't college bound or have pushy Mom's (like me ) and decide that he doesn't want to either. At the private school all his peers would be coming from families with the same expectations and he wouldn't know any better.
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The Captain
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Post by The Captain on Jan 23, 2014 14:41:51 GMT -5
Tiny Yes it does, but I have no delusions that DD will automatically be considered a high performing student. The only reason she's doing so well right now is because she is surrounded by classmates and teachers who challenge her. As far as the bad apples, my experience is a bit different than yours. My brother basically demanded to be allowed to go to the local public high school where he quickly fell in with a far worse crowd than any you could find at the private school. You just have to trust me on this. I know YMMV. @athena53 - I actually know three families. One had a daughter who started huffing at 14, was expelled by 15, and had her first baby by 16 and was expelled from the alternate school the same year. She is seriously lucky she did not do jail time. Her family could be a mirror image of my own. The other two had one kid who basically knocked out a year of college due to all the AP classes she took. The other kid took the dual-track program senior year and graduated HS with a diploma and community college welding certificate and got a good paying job that started a few weeks after graduation. milee - bingo! We have a winner! This is my biggest fear. DD is simply not a leader, she's a follower and has a very hard time resisting peer pressure. I'm terrified she will fall in with the wrong crowd.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Jan 23, 2014 14:43:41 GMT -5
I can't believe I'm even starting to think about this. DD is 11. We have three more years to make up our minds. In general the public schools in my area suck. The public high school that DD would have to attend has the following stats: 41% test at or above state standards 69% graduate within 4 years 73% are low income students 19% are english learners 14% are disabled and receive special services 26% of Seniors are ready for college coursework (score of 21 or higher on ACT of those who took the test). However the school has over 18 AP courses and has partnered with two of the local community college to allow students to start taking classes their senior year. The classes don't have to be college prep as I know kids who have graduated with coursework in welding, HVAC, and Lab Tech. There are definately pockets of excellent in the school. The districts were redrawn not too long after we moved. We could move again but would have to totally change areas and have a huge mortgage and obscene RE taxes. Till now we've had DD in a private school. She's thriving there. We have limited choices with private HS. If we go with one option, tuition, transportation, and fees will come to about $10K a year. DD will also be able to participate in after school actvities. Over 90% test at or above state standards (office could not give me an exact number?) 98% graduate within 4 years 99% go on to higher education (2/3 to a traditional 4 year university) 10-13% receive some sort of financial assistance 80% of those taking the ACT scored a 21 or higher. No information on english learners or special services. Only 9 AP courses and they are sometimes too full to accept as many students as whom apply. The second option has the same stats as the first option, but has twice as many AP classes, but is a 45+ minute bus ride one way. DD won't be able to participate in any after school actvities. Not an option really plus tuition etc. is $12K a year. So I'm torn. DH wants to go to an open house at the first private school this weekend. I honestly don't even want to think about it yet. What really sucks overall is that we DO have more options then some because we can afford private tuition. Local teachers' unions are fighting public charter schools tooth and nail because they don't want parents to have choices. It stinks. Just rambling I guess. I think you need to talk to families that go to private school. We have a private school in our district. There's still a huge drug problem, and kids who get Ds and Cs that attend the school, as well as kids who are no longer welcome to participate in the public school system. And I would go to the open house too, to see what kind of people they are looking for. We went to an open house for #3's preschool and people were name dropping the private school that our older two attend. I was like WTF, people, it's preschool.
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milee
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Post by milee on Jan 23, 2014 15:06:12 GMT -5
I'll probably be tarred and feathered for this one, but I do think there is a difference in the problems that you find at (no way to dance around it) private schools and public schools with a wealthy population vs. public schools with a poor population. It's not that the kids themselves are by default any better or worse, it's just that the types of problems they get into vary widely among those groups.
If you have an overall peer group and expectation that everyone goes to college, that creates a very different atmosphere than one in which a good chunk of kids haven't even thought about college. Also, in our area anyway, most of the problems the kids at the private/wealthy schools get into are caused by kids having way too much disposable income and way too little supervision. As a parent, you have a lot of control over those two variables, so if your kid doesn't have lots of spending money to blow on pot and you keep a reasonable eye on her, you can't eliminate any issues but you have a good chance of preventing them or catching them before they get out of hand. Not as true with the issues endemic in the public schools in poorer areas. If it's a truly crappy public school, as a parent, you won't have any influence over whether your kid has to use the bathroom at the same time as a gang member or has classes with pregnant teens or kids who are obviously high in class, for example. If the overall culture in the public school isn't one of kids going to college but just kids being forced to be in one place during the day, that causes it's own set of issues that you don't want your daughter to deal with.
And yes, let the flames begin...
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Jan 23, 2014 15:08:06 GMT -5
I'll probably be tarred and feathered for this one, but I do think there is a difference in the problems that you find at (no way to dance around it) private schools and public schools with a wealthy population vs. public schools with a poor population. It's not that the kids themselves are by default any better or worse, it's just that the types of problems they get into vary widely among those groups.
If you have an overall peer group and expectation that everyone goes to college, that creates a very different atmosphere than one in which a good chunk of kids haven't even thought about college. Also, in our area anyway, most of the problems the kids at the private/wealthy schools get into are caused by kids having way too much disposable income and way too little supervision. As a parent, you have a lot of control over those two variables, so if your kid doesn't have lots of spending money to blow on pot and you keep a reasonable eye on her, you can't eliminate any issues but you have a good chance of preventing them or catching them before they get out of hand. Not as true with the issues endemic in the public schools in poorer areas. If it's a truly crappy public school, as a parent, you won't have any influence over whether your kid has to use the bathroom at the same time as a gang member or has classes with pregnant teens or kids who are obviously high in class, for example. If the overall culture in the public school isn't one of kids going to college but just kids being forced to be in one place during the day, that causes it's own set of issues that you don't want your daughter to deal with.
And yes, let the flames begin...
Rich kids get coked up and wasted on Cristal and wreck the Mercedes. If they get pregnant, they get an abortion during a "ski trip"
Poor kids get high on meth, drink a 40, and wreck the pick up truck. They have the baby.
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Jan 23, 2014 15:50:07 GMT -5
I know a bunch of people who bough houses with the want that they are in the Atlantic City school district. Once I got done being flabbergasted they did a good job of explaining why. First of all I should say that anyone who doesn't think private school kids get into things like drugs is living in a dream world. In my DD's words they not only do them, they do more of them, because they can afford more of them. Their families can also afford Swamp's services if they get caught. some of the reasons for them choosing a lesser preforming school were similar to what you mentioned. Students that wouldn't crack the top half of a high preforming HS can look like Einsteins at a lesser school. They normally don't pass the AP tests in huge numbers but just the fact that they take them makes their transcript look good if not great. A good friend of my DD's transfered to a small abismally preforming school. She went from an average student in her grad class to the top 5%. She got the scholarship offers from college to match too. And in those schools the kids in the honors program classes rarely if ever mix with the rest of the student body. If they can handle lunch with the masses they will be just fine. That group normally is highly motivated. The cons can be the standards for the classes taught are also much lower than in higher proforming schools. So taking classes at the CC is a really good idea to show them what is really expected at college. There is nothing more depressing than talking to a college freshman who is flunking classes they took in HS as an AP class and got an A. They have no way of knowing that the class wasn't really AP or even honors level since they don't have anything to compare it to. Good luck whatever you do!
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Jan 23, 2014 15:50:49 GMT -5
I'll probably be tarred and feathered for this one, but I do think there is a difference in the problems that you find at (no way to dance around it) private schools and public schools with a wealthy population vs. public schools with a poor population. It's not that the kids themselves are by default any better or worse, it's just that the types of problems they get into vary widely among those groups.
If you have an overall peer group and expectation that everyone goes to college, that creates a very different atmosphere than one in which a good chunk of kids haven't even thought about college. Also, in our area anyway, most of the problems the kids at the private/wealthy schools get into are caused by kids having way too much disposable income and way too little supervision. As a parent, you have a lot of control over those two variables, so if your kid doesn't have lots of spending money to blow on pot and you keep a reasonable eye on her, you can't eliminate any issues but you have a good chance of preventing them or catching them before they get out of hand. Not as true with the issues endemic in the public schools in poorer areas. If it's a truly crappy public school, as a parent, you won't have any influence over whether your kid has to use the bathroom at the same time as a gang member or has classes with pregnant teens or kids who are obviously high in class, for example. If the overall culture in the public school isn't one of kids going to college but just kids being forced to be in one place during the day, that causes it's own set of issues that you don't want your daughter to deal with.
And yes, let the flames begin...
Rich kids get coked up and wasted on Cristal and wreck the Mercedes. If they get pregnant, they get an abortion during a "ski trip"
Poor kids get high on meth, drink a 40, and wreck the pick up truck. They have the baby.
I've never understood that (but I do think it is true)...the families that can afford to have the baby don't but those that can't afford the baby keep it....I'm pro-life so I would prefer that everyone keep the baby...but if someone was going to have an abortion, I would prefer it be those that will repeat that welfare cycle.....
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Jan 23, 2014 15:52:21 GMT -5
I know a bunch of people who bough houses with the want that they are in the Atlantic City school district. Once I got done being flabbergasted they did a good job of explaining why. First of all I should say that anyone who doesn't think private school kids get into things like drugs is living in a dream world. In my DD's words they not only do them, they do more of them, because they can afford more of them. Their families can also afford Swamp's services if they get caught. some of the reasons for them choosing a lesser preforming school were similar to what you mentioned. Students that wouldn't crack the top half of a high preforming HS can look like Einsteins at a lesser school. They normally don't pass the AP tests in huge numbers but just the fact that they take them makes their transcript look good if not great. A good friend of my DD's transfered to a small abismally preforming school. She went from an average student in her grad class to the top 5%. She got the scholarship offers from college to match too. And in those schools the kids in the honors program classes rarely if ever mix with the rest of the student body. If they can handle lunch with the masses they will be just fine. That group normally is highly motivated. The cons can be the standards for the classes taught are also much lower than in higher proforming schools. So taking classes at the CC is a really good idea to show them what is really expected at college. There is nothing more depressing than talking to a college freshman who is flunking classes they took in HS as an AP class and got an A. They have no way of knowing that the class wasn't really AP or even honors level since they don't have anything to compare it to. Good luck whatever you do! I don't know about CC being like a real college...I took classes at a CC and was floored at how easy they were...as if they dumbed those classes down because the kids going there would be coming from the poor ass schools....
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Jan 23, 2014 15:58:54 GMT -5
I know a bunch of people who bough houses with the want that they are in the Atlantic City school district. Once I got done being flabbergasted they did a good job of explaining why. First of all I should say that anyone who doesn't think private school kids get into things like drugs is living in a dream world. In my DD's words they not only do them, they do more of them, because they can afford more of them. Their families can also afford Swamp's services if they get caught. some of the reasons for them choosing a lesser preforming school were similar to what you mentioned. Students that wouldn't crack the top half of a high preforming HS can look like Einsteins at a lesser school. They normally don't pass the AP tests in huge numbers but just the fact that they take them makes their transcript look good if not great. A good friend of my DD's transfered to a small abismally preforming school. She went from an average student in her grad class to the top 5%. She got the scholarship offers from college to match too. And in those schools the kids in the honors program classes rarely if ever mix with the rest of the student body. If they can handle lunch with the masses they will be just fine. That group normally is highly motivated. The cons can be the standards for the classes taught are also much lower than in higher proforming schools. So taking classes at the CC is a really good idea to show them what is really expected at college. There is nothing more depressing than talking to a college freshman who is flunking classes they took in HS as an AP class and got an A. They have no way of knowing that the class wasn't really AP or even honors level since they don't have anything to compare it to. Good luck whatever you do! I don't know about CC being like a real college...I took classes at a CC and was floored at how easy they were...as if they dumbed those classes down because the kids going there would be coming from the poor ass schools.... It may be different now or it may vary state to state but they can't do that in NJ. DH teaches PT at the local CC and his syllabus gets sent down from the DHE in Trenton. Every school in the state gets the same one for the same classes. So if you take a class in the CC it is the same course as if you take it at Rutgers. Where it shows which schools get the most students from the lower preforming schools here is in the pass/fail rates. The CC's in areas with great HS's that have students whose parents want to save money have really good graduation and transfer to 4 year university rates. The more the CC is in an area with lower preforming HS the graduation rates get aweful! DH was just saying last night he has 55 kids in one class and he will be lucky if half finish it and that doesn't mean pass.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 15:59:44 GMT -5
People can redeem themselves, Tina. You came from a less-than-stellar background - if you found yourself pregnant in high school would you want people telling you that you should abort because you will never amount to anything?
Anyway, not the point.
My point is that I understand the desire to surround your kids with "good" kids, but like swamp said, those kids are rarely good. Their brand of trouble is less, how can I say this... ghetto and trashy.... but it is still bad behavior. Also, private school teachers don't have to go through the typical teaching certification standards set by the state, so they could either be geniuses and superbly qualified to teach, or they could be morons with an in.
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Jan 23, 2014 16:02:14 GMT -5
I think it really depends on exactly the set up of the public school and how it is mixed together.
The largest school district here took their poor performing downtown high school and put the IB program in it. The district made it the school that (this is my boss's description so it may not be PC) a large percentage of the autistic kids go to. Then it is downtown and a lot of the poor neighborhoods in the city feed to it. It has 3 very distinct groups of kids that very rarely meet - except maybe in art class. It is now a nationally ranked high school with the best debate team in the state and is highly competitive at the national level. My boss's 2 kids go there (if you test high enough any one in the district can go to that school for the IB program). Because of the odd mix of kids, they don't have a lot of students go out for the athletic teams. So, my boss's kids are not only in the IB program, they can play sports, and are part of the nationally ranked debate team. All things that the private schools around here don't have (and things that wouldn't happen if they went to the high school they "should" based on geography")
For you, what are your daughter's friends doing? Are their parents looking at private school or the public school? Are they in a different district? That said, I'm not sure I would really want to worry about it when it is 3 years away. I probably would because that is what I do, but at the same time, I'm not sure worrying or thinking about it 3 years ahead does anything.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Jan 23, 2014 16:07:42 GMT -5
People can redeem themselves, Tina. You came from a less-than-stellar background - if you found yourself pregnant in high school would you want people telling you that you should abort because you will never amount to anything? Anyway, not the point. My point is that I understand the desire to surround your kids with "good" kids, but like swamp said, those kids are rarely good. Their brand of trouble is less, how can I say this... ghetto and trashy.... but it is still bad behavior. Also, private school teachers don't have to go through the typical teaching certification standards set by the state, so they could either be geniuses and superbly qualified to teach, or they could be morons with an in. I'm against abortion...I would never tell anyone to abort their baby. I just find it ironic that those that come from families that can actually afford the baby are the ones more likely to abort it. Trust me, I'm pretty sure anyone that knew me in high school would have assumed that I would never about to anything.....I didn't grow up until I graduated and realized that real life was hard and I hate poverty.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 16:09:23 GMT -5
Everyone talks about drugs and such, but that's not even the bad influence I'm worried about. My son looked at the course catalog for the public high school and was thrilled because they had classes in things like raising hamsters and pastry baking. He is smart as hell, but without a doubt lazy. He will take the path of least resistance if he can.
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Pants
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Post by Pants on Jan 23, 2014 16:12:57 GMT -5
Captain - serious question - where do you live? You're far from the city but have horrible schools... I didn't even know that was possible...
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Jan 23, 2014 16:23:54 GMT -5
I moved out to the county with the very best schools so I wouldn't have this issue. First, kudos to you for obtaining the stats and not just going by word of mouth. The wealthy folks (or people who could afford it) in my city have always sent their kids to private school; however, there has been a real grassroots movement over the past few years as parents want to explore giving the public schools a chance. Nobody wanted to be a guinea pig and just followed whatever one else did. Those parents started talking to each other at the playgrounds about exploring the public school system, met with the principal to understand what's happening in the school and why people are flocking to the private schools or the "better" school outside their districts. They were able to band together and not be the guinea pigs and now the reputation of the schools in their district being "bad" is gone. The schools in the city are now reputable, but these parents are also very engaged.
Of course, this is still in the elementary school phase. Middle school and high school is another whole issue. But, I thought it was pretty cool. Now kids can be go to school and be friends with people in their own neighborhoods and there is a lot less disconnect with neighbors and a greater sense of community.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 16:26:45 GMT -5
Given the stats you posted, I would suck it up and plan on private. My experiance is that even on the smart track you won't get as good of an education from the underperforming school as you will from a school where mostly everyone is perofrming at or above grade level.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Jan 23, 2014 16:30:24 GMT -5
What does your DD want?
I wouldn't sweat it too much one way or the other. It sounds like your DD is a good kid and would succeed in either situation. Though, there might be something to be said for consistency by choosing a private HS, given that she's already in a private school.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Jan 23, 2014 16:42:01 GMT -5
OK, two things - 1 - Everything I know about HS in US comes from Lifetime movies and 2 - my most important criteria in house search was a good HS.
We live in a town with one elementary, one middle and one HS, but it's suppose to be a damn good one.
When we were considering various towns, I went to a city-data board and asked not about stats and tests, but the culture of various schools.
So, if I had to choose between private and public, I would do the same - I would want to know what really goes on in school, academics aside.
Remember Anne's thread and how everyone was saying "wow, you can't tolerate that for $20K/yr" May be there is something to it. When people shall out the money, they want certain assurances.
I don't know....I am rambling....but I guess academics would only be half of the decision making thing for me, I am paranoid and would be worried about all the "other" stuff.
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The Captain
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Post by The Captain on Jan 23, 2014 16:44:17 GMT -5
Captain - serious question - where do you live? You're far from the city but have horrible schools... I didn't even know that was possible... I live in one of the collar counties. Most of the collar counties around here are still pretty densely populated so have pockets with the same slew of "issues" to deal with that the city does. What's sad/sick/ironic is the school district that we used to be in before the redistricting is the second or third best performing in the state depending if you're looking at middle or HS. And yes, the boundries were redrawn explicity to eliminate the undesirables in areas such as mine . My little wedge of land is technically unincorporated (as is a lot of my neighbors) so there wasn't enough folks impacted to even begin to successfully challenge the new maps. The folks in a neighboring town were much more successful in getting (then) current school age kids "grandfathered in" as a compromise. Too late for DD though. Another kink in the armor is we live close to a well know sanctuary city and you can see the impact that has on local school performance. I won't go into the politics of that discussion but the impact is clear, at least to me. If I tried to buy a house in that district my mortgage would be at least 1.5X's what it is now for a much smaller property and RE taxes would at least double. Since our taxes are currently $7-8K a year we're still ahead paying private grade school (and yes, even HS) tuition in the long run.
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Pants
Junior Associate
Joined: Dec 27, 2010 19:26:44 GMT -5
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Post by Pants on Jan 23, 2014 16:55:19 GMT -5
Captain - serious question - where do you live? You're far from the city but have horrible schools... I didn't even know that was possible... I live in one of the collar counties. Most of the collar counties around here are still pretty densely populated so have pockets with the same slew of "issues" to deal with that the city does. What's sad/sick/ironic is the school district that we used to be in before the redistricting is the second or third best performing in the state depending if you're looking at middle or HS. And yes, the boundries were redrawn explicity to eliminate the undesirables in areas such as mine . My little wedge of land is technically unincorporated (as is a lot of my neighbors) so there wasn't enough folks impacted to even begin to successfully challenge the new maps. The folks in a neighboring town were much more successful in getting (then) current school age kids "grandfathered in" as a compromise. Too late for DD though. Another kink in the armor is we live close to a well know sanctuary city and you can see the impact that has on local school performance. I won't go into the politics of that discussion but the impact is clear, at least to me. If I tried to buy a house in that district my mortgage would be at least 1.5X's what it is now for a much smaller property and RE taxes would at least double. Since our taxes are currently $7-8K a year we're still ahead paying private grade school (and yes, even HS) tuition in the long run. Ah - we're on the edge of Cook, so we've got the burbs with decent public schools - but cook county sales tax...
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The Captain
Junior Associate
Hugs are good...
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Post by The Captain on Jan 23, 2014 16:55:36 GMT -5
I think it really depends on exactly the set up of the public school and how it is mixed together.
The largest school district here took their poor performing downtown high school and put the IB program in it. The district made it the school that (this is my boss's description so it may not be PC) a large percentage of the autistic kids go to. Then it is downtown and a lot of the poor neighborhoods in the city feed to it. It has 3 very distinct groups of kids that very rarely meet - except maybe in art class. It is now a nationally ranked high school with the best debate team in the state and is highly competitive at the national level. My boss's 2 kids go there (if you test high enough any one in the district can go to that school for the IB program). Because of the odd mix of kids, they don't have a lot of students go out for the athletic teams. So, my boss's kids are not only in the IB program, they can play sports, and are part of the nationally ranked debate team. All things that the private schools around here don't have (and things that wouldn't happen if they went to the high school they "should" based on geography")
For you, what are your daughter's friends doing? Are their parents looking at private school or the public school? Are they in a different district? That said, I'm not sure I would really want to worry about it when it is 3 years away. I probably would because that is what I do, but at the same time, I'm not sure worrying or thinking about it 3 years ahead does anything. We've actually started to discuss this with some of the parents, who like me, can't even begin to really think about it yet. Right now the general concensus is it's too far in the future to worry about. I just like being an outlier i guess
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milee
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Post by milee on Jan 23, 2014 16:58:48 GMT -5
It's good you're friends with the parents of her friends. That will go a long way towards keeping her out of trouble.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 18:02:34 GMT -5
milee put it more eloquently than I could, but private schools have a couple of big advantages over public schools. First of all, the kids have parents who went the extra mile to put their kids in private school. My son ended up with a far more diverse group of students than he would have in our Bergen County, NJ suburb because many of his classmates were from Brooklyn and the Bronx and their parents wanted to get them out of the 'hood. What those parents and I had in common was a desire to see that our kids had the best education we could provide for them. To me, the fact that he ended up going to school with kids from a variety of backgrounds and they all learned to work as a team was an unexpected plus. Second, the kids who really didn't want to be there were thrown out. Public schools will hang onto kids and coddle them, almost no matter what. They just add more security guards and metal detectors. Private schools know that if you don't like it you'll take your kid and your money elsewhere. I'm well aware that private schools have similar problems with drugs and delinquency- heck, my son's school was mostly kids who didn't fit in the public schools for one reason or another. DS once told me he'd never try heroin because he knew kids who had been though heroin withdrawal and they said it was hell. Good news... I think? Either way, you still have to keep an eye on your kid and his/her friends and trust that the school has things under control. I'm less certain about the latter when it comes to public schools.
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jeep108
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Post by jeep108 on Jan 23, 2014 18:19:29 GMT -5
Here you can get a boundary exception for high school. I see parents do it all the time with my daughter's high school. It's a public high school with a A+ rating . I'm not sure how many they allow. My daughter's best friend had to get one. She was suppose to go to the high school in the other direction that only has a C+ rating. She had to get her own transportation there and back. Something else to think about.
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