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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Also, excuse my ignorance on this, but even if DS gets into a top college, unless he gets amazing scholarships, we still may not be able to afford to send him to where he wants to go, so in the end, since they base financial aid on family income, it is what it is, regardless of what district he's in.
I also personally made that "mistake" going to a private school for a lower paying field and would not encourage DS to go that route DTR.
My student loans seem to never be going away.
Message edited 5/15/2013 6:23:07 PM.
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Posted 5/15/13 6:22 PM  |
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
To me a good school district means one where I know for sure the majority of the kids are not on drugs, in gangs, or don't attend on a regular basis. I know what areas to avoid, and honestly I would be shocked to find someone who would willingly buy in a district that is known for those issues.
Of course there are drugs and gangs everywhere, I'm not stupid, but if you compare, say, Bellmore to Brentwood, what do you think you are going to find?
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| Posted 5/15/13 6:34 PM |
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butterfly20
Party of 5 - 2015
Member since 4/06 7390 total posts
Name:
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by Mrs213
It all comes down to test scores and dropout rate...
Thats what I use to look at.....
but since I know dh will be very helpful to them at home in learning, I don't look as much at that.. as long as I feel more safe - less gang activity, then I know they should excel.
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| Posted 5/15/13 11:33 PM |
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Janice
Sweet Jessie Quinn
Member since 5/05 27567 total posts
Name:
Janice
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What does a
We had bought our first house in a GREAT district. Top 10 schools in the state. Ten right before kindergarten we moved. Transferred to a very small town.
I panicked. School is not even in top 200 in state rankings.
We toured catholic. I liked it, dh loved it. We were torn.
But decided to give public a whirl before we started paying tuition blindly.
Let me tell you. I love this school. They love me. My kid loves Monday mornings.
It is very very diverse. White, black, Hispanic, Asian, South Pacific.
It is not all about test scores. And you know what is great? There are no jones' to keep up with.
School is going to be whatever you out into it. A great teacher goes a long way.
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| Posted 5/16/13 2:27 PM |
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luvmyReese
Hello Kitty
Member since 1/08 7542 total posts
Name:
Catt
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by Janice
We had bought our first house in a GREAT district. Top 10 schools in the state. Ten right before kindergarten we moved. Transferred to a very small town.
I panicked. School is not even in top 200 in state rankings.
We toured catholic. I liked it, dh loved it. We were torn.
But decided to give public a whirl before we started paying tuition blindly.
Let me tell you. I love this school. They love me. My kid loves Monday mornings.
It is very very diverse. White, black, Hispanic, Asian, South Pacific.
It is not all about test scores. And you know what is great? There are no jones' to keep up with.
School is going to be whatever you out into it. A great teacher goes a long way.
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| Posted 5/16/13 9:30 PM |
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lululu
LIF Adult
Member since 7/05 9511 total posts
Name:
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Are you moving from the city or from one LI district to another? If you think that every district has gangs, budget cuts and school closings I would have to say you must be looking to move from one bad area to another....
I don't know of many LI districts that have gangs. If all of the districts you are considering have all of these problems, I certainly wouldn't bother moving somewhere that has taxes 2 or 3 times higher than the current bad school district you are in. Clearly that would make no sense.
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| Posted 5/16/13 10:38 PM |
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Teach723
Have faith. Believe. Dream.
Member since 8/10 2356 total posts
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by peanutbutter2
I think the definition of "good" is severely distorted on Long Island.
Far too many people label a school district "good" or "bad" based on the racial makeup of the student body. Far too many schools are labeled "bad" by people who literally know nothing about them. No, not everyone does this, but plenty of people do.
For DH and I, we are fine living in a school district that works for us. Whether other people label it "good" or not is no longer important to either of us because we see the prejudiced way many people around us look at districts.
I work in a low income district here on Long Island. Before that I spent 2 years doing leaves in 2 so called "great" districts. Well, where I am now I would absolutely send my DD. the teachers in my district are extremely dedicated and I totally agree that many use the racial makeup to determine good and bad. I think it's a shame. It saddens me when I drive to work and I see little kids waiting for the bus to private school. Right around the corner they have an amazing Elementary school that their taxes are paying for and they have no clue.
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| Posted 5/16/13 11:25 PM |
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Teach723
Have faith. Believe. Dream.
Member since 8/10 2356 total posts
Name:
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
ETA: It is very difficult to get a teaching job on LI right now so all of these districts can get the best out there.
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| Posted 5/16/13 11:27 PM |
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peanutbutter2
Carpe diem!
Member since 11/10 5287 total posts
Name:
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
I think "sad" is a good way to describe many elements of this situation. When I drive through my part of town around school dismissal time, I see SO much diversity. I see white, Indian, Asian, black, Spanish...everyone is walking around. I can't believe how many people would be "scared" of this. It actually makes me sick.
Message edited 5/17/2013 7:50:04 AM.
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| Posted 5/17/13 7:49 AM |
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
I like when I hear feedback from people who work in the districts.
I work with a lot of people who are poor and a different skin color then my own, and it absolutely does not mean that they are bad people.
I get the gang/safety thing, and wouldn't want to send DC to school in that kind of environment either, but I grew up in an area with almost no diversity, and having moved to Long Island as an adult, have found first hand that it's one of the most racist and class divided places I have ever lived.
I think bottom line people are fearful of being around others who are "different" from them.
It's a lot more scarier to me as a parent to think of rich, lily white kids out there, totally unsupervised with their parents money to do whatever the hell they want.
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| Posted 5/17/13 7:50 AM |
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by Teach723
ETA: It is very difficult to get a teaching job on LI right now so all of these districts can get the best out there.
That's what I thought too. I am always hearing how hard it is for teachers to find jobs, even in the city.
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| Posted 5/17/13 7:57 AM |
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DiamondGirl
You are my I love you
Member since 7/09 18802 total posts
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DiamondMama
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by MorningCuppaCoffee
Posted by Teach723
ETA: It is very difficult to get a teaching job on LI right now so all of these districts can get the best out there.
That's what I thought too. I am always hearing how hard it is for teachers to find jobs, even in the city.
It is and now a days the city is actually a better gig bc there is MUCH more security. You get excessed in NYC they still pay you and you can find a job anywhere in the city, get excessed from your district in LI and you are out of luck, if your small district has no room then you are out of job, no pay, no nothing. With the amount of budget cuts going on I wouldnt want to work in LI!
Message edited 5/17/2013 8:15:15 AM.
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| Posted 5/17/13 8:14 AM |
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luvmyReese
Hello Kitty
Member since 1/08 7542 total posts
Name:
Catt
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
A "good" school does not guarantee a
"good" student. You and your child need
to work hard no matter where he/she
attends. For me its what you can afford,
the neighborhood & community. If you
like where you live then its a good
chance you will like the schools. I live in
Riverhead dist it's not the best but my
children thrive, I don't pay crazy ass
taxes (and have to live up to others
standards, I'm able to stay home and
raise my kids) & the teachers &
staff are WONDERFUL. My son has an 80
average & Im super happy with that.
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| Posted 5/18/13 5:50 PM |
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by luvmyReese
A "good" school does not guarantee a
"good" student. You and your child need
to work hard no matter where he/she
attends. For me its what you can afford,
the neighborhood & community. If you
like where you live then its a good
chance you will like the schools. I live in
Riverhead dist it's not the best but my
children thrive, I don't pay crazy ass
taxes (and have to live up to others
standards, I'm able to stay home and
raise my kids) & the teachers &
staff are WONDERFUL. My son has an 80
average & Im super happy with that.
If you like where you live then it's a good chance you will like the schools.
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| Posted 5/18/13 6:00 PM |
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MrsMick
Baby #2 debuts in March 2016!
Member since 9/09 1977 total posts
Name:
Michele
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by DiamondGirl
My two cents are so long as a school district is safe and good you're child will do well if YOU are invested and involved in their education. What makes schools (and districts) great is that they are filled with kids who have parents who care about their education, this is the single most important thing in your child achieving their personal best.
So personally I agree with you, no you do not need to spend 2, 3 times the taxes to be 'best school district ever' your child can do just as well at 'good school district with plenty of involved parents'. Surely we all want to avoid schools/districts where parents do not care (bc the unfortunate reality is they likely have kids who do not care about learning bc it is of no value and is not reinforced at home) and are not involved but $$$ does not always = best school iMO.
I 100% agree with this. I went to one of the worst school districts on the island. (Hicksville) All my friends are all successful- accountants, lawyers, teachers, etc.... They all turned out okay due to super supportive parents and involvement. That's all that counts. Mind you, I have friends that went to Jericho which is one of the top and have heard of teachers passing kids that weren't quite passing to keep their numbers high. Also saw that drugs and alcohol was out of control. So, I think that if you are in a SD where you know what to expect, know the issues and involved with your kids every step of the way, they will be fine and succeed.
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| Posted 5/19/13 11:09 AM |
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MrsMick
Baby #2 debuts in March 2016!
Member since 9/09 1977 total posts
Name:
Michele
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by MorningCuppaCoffee
I like when I hear feedback from people who work in the districts.
I work with a lot of people who are poor and a different skin color then my own, and it absolutely does not mean that they are bad people.
I get the gang/safety thing, and wouldn't want to send DC to school in that kind of environment either, but I grew up in an area with almost no diversity, and having moved to Long Island as an adult, have found first hand that it's one of the most racist and class divided places I have ever lived.
I think bottom line people are fearful of being around others who are "different" from them.
It's a lot more scarier to me as a parent to think of rich, lily white kids out there, totally unsupervised with their parents money to do whatever the hell they want.
I one hundred percent agree with this. Again, I grew up in Hicksville and while some people frown upon it because of it's diversity, it's a great town. I grew up there having Spanish, Indian, Greek, Italian, friends- all types of backgrounds. Sure, there were some gang issues but I never felt unsafe going to school. Drive through there now and see all the different awesome restaurants on Broadway. We chose to buy in Farmingdale because there is some diversity but on a smaller town type of feel. I want my kids to grow up respecting other cultures and not to be like a lot of entitled brats out there. Plus from people that attend Farmingdale schools have nothing but great things to say so it was the right place for us to start out.
Message edited 5/19/2013 11:15:12 AM.
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| Posted 5/19/13 11:13 AM |
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SJSM
LIF Adolescent
Member since 1/09 764 total posts
Name:
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by lipglossjunky73
I have consulted in districts on LI where I needed to go through metal detectors and there were 2-3 police officers on every floor of the high schools (not security guards..... Police officers).
I'm curious what district is this? I am in "The worst" - by state standards district on LI and we don't even have this.
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| Posted 5/19/13 2:21 PM |
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
I also personally think that people from "immigrant" backgrounds (one of the reasons I know people frown on districts with diversity), want nothing but the best for their own kids, so as a result, you will see them pushing their children to do well.
My district has a strong Spanish as well as Polish influence, and I've talked to a lot of the moms in outside activities, such as the library or where DS goes to gymnastics, and they seem like very down to earth, nice, quality people.
Having money does not prevent problems from occurring. I have found that people with $$$ are often more messed up. JMO, of course ;).
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| Posted 5/19/13 2:38 PM |
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Teach723
Have faith. Believe. Dream.
Member since 8/10 2356 total posts
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by MorningCuppaCoffee
I also personally think that people from "immigrant" backgrounds (one of the reasons I know people frown on districts with diversity), want nothing but the best for their own kids, so as a result, you will see them pushing their children to do well.
My district has a strong Spanish as well as Polish influence, and I've talked to a lot of the moms in outside activities, such as the library or where DS goes to gymnastics, and they seem like very down to earth, nice, quality people.
Having money does not prevent problems from occurring. I have found that people with $$$ are often more messed up. JMO, of course ;).
Absolutely! I was amazed at my first parent teacher conferences in my district when I had parents constantly thanking me for helping their child. I have many parents who don't speak English, but they really do want what's best for their child. Don't most of us really? You'll always get your families who have some scary situations, but really this happens anywhere. I love my district. I love the diversity. I love that my students aren't phased one bit by it. I would say if you really want to know more about the good and bad try to find and speak to someone who works there. 
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| Posted 5/19/13 5:03 PM |
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rojerono
Happiest.
Member since 8/06 13803 total posts
Name:
Jeannie
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
"Good School District" translates into "Heavy Parent Involvement" in my opinion.
The more involved a parent is in their child's education, the better the kid will do and the more on point the teachers will be.
Now - you can make ANY school district "good" for your child by being on top of things, supplementing education, etc.. but there is power in numbers. The more parents that are involved and active, the better the conditions become.
No admin or official or teacher is a better advocate for kids than parents.
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| Posted 5/19/13 5:21 PM |
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mrsyoungmommy
can't wait to meet Sophia!
Member since 6/10 1441 total posts
Name:
Danielle
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
Posted by MorningCuppaCoffee
I agree. I have needed to utilize CPSE for DS and the school district has been nothing short of amazing about it.
I am in Copiague which outsiders are ALWAYS turning their nose up about.
Last week was Pre-K registration, and while there were some people of different racial/ethnic backgrounds then myself, most of the people who were there were White, Italian or Irish descent.
Most of my neighbors have lived here for generations and have graduated from good colleges. One is even in med school right now.
DH and I are solidly middle class and I feel more comfortable with DS being raised in this kind of environment, vs. one where we will be forced to feel like we need to keep up (when we can't!).
We will make our decision in middle school about where we want him to go, based on how he is doing.
He goes to private school right now for nursery and there are certain things that are not for me in that environment either.
We are in copiague as well. DH and I are actually graduates of copiague. I will most likely send DD to elementary school (Deauville) but may think about switching her for middle. I'm not sure and we have some time (she's 8 months)
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| Posted 5/19/13 10:29 PM |
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alli3131
Peanut is here!!!!!!
Member since 5/09 18388 total posts
Name:
Allison
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What does a
Good district or bad by people opinions really mean nothing.
I went to a good district and had kids overdosing, bombs planted and exploded during finals etc. These were white kids with money. I can't even count how many people I knew that spent time in jail. All because they had money and parents that didn't supervise them.
My DH went to a "bad" district (that I have heard people on here say never live in that area) and he never had those issues. The kids he went to school with were not rich and he said the worst drug around was weed cause that's all people could afford.
We both probably received the same education. We both went to undergrad and law school and have decent jobs.
So really I don't think its about the district I think its about you as a parent and how you get invlolved in your kids life.
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| Posted 5/20/13 9:20 AM |
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AScottWolf
I <3 our squish!
Member since 11/10 2237 total posts
Name:
Adriana
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
I agree with others, a "good school district" means having high parental and teacher involvement.
I went to Elmont and even back then it wasn't considered good (despite having a 100% graduation rate a few years later and the highest ap/regents scores among minorities in the entire state).
Although parental involvement is a hard thing to judge, if it's low in a school district, I want to know that the the teachers/admin are caring enough to go that extra mile. Parental involvement was pretty good in my HS at the time but it was def up and down. Regardless, the teachers were there at 6am for study groups and had these same groups afterschool 5 days a week and on Sat in May/June. Also, we had a principle who would literally knock on people's doors to make sure there kids were at school and go down to the beach on Sr. Cut day and just wait for her students to show up lol.
Imo, it comes down to parental involvement, diversity (ethnically and regarding SES), and teacher/administration dedication. Also, depending on the family and the individual student, athletics, arts, and Special Ed. might be something to way your opinion on a "Good" school district.
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| Posted 5/20/13 11:35 AM |
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Bridex100
Two Under Two Mommy
Member since 3/08 10420 total posts
Name:
Momx100
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
I believe most rankings are based on test scores, #of AP/honors classes offered and college matriculation. A "good" school will have a large number of students getting into top colleges every year, have a high average SAT score, have students scoring 4-5 on AP exams, etc.
For me, I would also want a school that is well funded and has an abundance of extracurricular activities. Most good school districts will have a strong PTA with involved parents.
At the end of the day, if you are an involved parent, your child should thrive at any decent school. It doesn't necessarily have to be one of the deemed better school districts. The better school districts are usually the wealthier school districts. Great Neck, Port Washington, Manhasset, Jericho come to mind when I think of good school districts in LI. A lot of people we know are moving to Manhasset and Great Neck for close proximity to Manhattan and good schools.
Message edited 5/20/2013 3:01:12 PM.
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| Posted 5/20/13 2:49 PM |
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Jenhos
Maeve
Member since 6/05 3273 total posts
Name:
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Re: What does a "good school district" mean? - Edited
I live in what many consider a "good" district. For me it was about special ed programs available, test scores, percent of graduates and schools they get into, AP classes, sports opportunities. I feel I live in a well rounded district as far as whats offered. Not the most diverse but not the least either.
I do pay a boat load in taxes (more than 15k) and paid alot for my house. That was my choice.
We lived in a neighborhood that many considered having a "bad" school district (Malverne) and still paid a lot in takes (13k) and was paying for catholic school.
I went to catholic school my whole life even though I loved in an area that people think is a "good" district (Floral Park) so using the public school is new to me.
I can only say that since my kids started public school in our district I am beyond impressed. Class sizes are reasonable, lots of break-out groups for smaller more 1:1 attention. Lots of parent involvement.
So to me these are the things that make a good school district.
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| Posted 5/20/13 4:33 PM |
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