SLCC, Dunwoody, other? (Atlanta, Sandy Springs, Alpharetta: best neighborhood, 2014, credit)

[MIAtoATL]

We are relocating to ATL in a month, and I would like some real information! My husband will be working in midtown. He has to go to the office most days, but has some flexibility with his work hours.
We have seen homes in Dunwoody, Va-Hi, Sandy Springs and Duluth/SLCC.

Schools: we have three very young kids and would prefer to use public school at least through elementary school. Our oldest will start Kindergarden in the fall. But, of course, we would like only very good schools- this is important!

Commute- what is the real commute from SLCC and Dunwoody?

Budget: our budget is up to $1.2M.

I don't know anyone there, so a community where I can meet other moms easily would be a plus!

Although the Morningside/Va-Hi area is certainly convenient to work, we are concerned it's "city living" and we would miss the amenities of the suburbs and the activities for the kids (pools, soccer, etc).

Dunwoody - Vanderlyn or Austin? I've heard they instituted a "quiet lunch" at Vanderlyn - anyone have details? Other schools have this?

Would Alpharetta, with the new connector to I85, be feasible - is the connector helping commuters?

Which area would fit our needs best? Thank you so much!!

[lastminutemom]

I think you can find pools and soccer easily in VAHI but understand that you may prefer the feel of the burbs.

If you are talking about the new connector on 400/85, it just opened yesterday so far too early to tell.

Vanderlyn and Austin are both fairly structured schools and both are crowded. There is a newer elementary school up there (Dunwoody Elementary) that may be a bit less rigid. As to quiet lunch, on occasion many elementary schools may have a day of this when students are especially loud. While I am not a fan, I will say that when an elementary cafeteria gets wild, lunches don't get eaten.

Any chance you can get down here really quickly for a visit. Schools are a personal thing and what works for one, may not work for another. State testing, though, for the most part is April 20ish until the end of the first week of May. Schools generally don't welcome visitors during that time. You could call and see when tours are available.

You should also know that DeKalb County (where Austin, etc) are located is not in great shape. Class size allowances are the largest in the metro area, the system is broke and has struggled with accreditation issues. Teachers now have about the lowest pay in the metro area, and therefore are leaving at large rates. These are still good schools, but not as good as they would be in a healthier system.

[Tarzanman]

What is SLCC?

You should probably look hard at moving to Brookhaven. It is a suburb, it is close enough for your hubby to have a 30 minute commute, and there are plenty of homes in that price range in the area.

I don't come into regular contact with kids anymore, so I can't give you any good info on schools.

[chalvey]

Is is possibly Sugarloaf Country Club?

[CMMom]

I was thinking it might be St. Marlo's or St. Ives Country Club, but the acronym doesn't fit.

[Tito_d]

Hi MIAtoATL

Welcome to the ATL. If it were up to me I will choose Dunwoody. It's a nice area and each week I visit I see new improvements. The perimeter area near Dunwoody will be the new center of economic activity in the metro area. I think the new city of Dunwoody was a good initiative and is making a visible difference. Dekalb county school system has improved markedly since last year and has been removed from probation, the rate of improvement continues. I have not seen any signs of exodus of the teachers from Dekalb county and you cannot really judge the performance of the Dunwoody schools based on the performance of the county as Dekalb is the most diverse county in Georgia (along with Gwinnett) so each area of the county should be judged on its own merits. The test scores of each school are available but you should not restrict yourself to the tests scores as they do not really tell the whole story. Kids entering schools in 2014 will face a very different world when they are ready for college, most will chose online universities or other ways of education yet to be invented.

I doubt that the new connector will help traffic from Alpharetta since the choke points are further to the north. It will help commuters from Dunwoody save an average of 5 to 10 mn (three red lights), but if you live in Dunwoody you have several choices of getting to Midtown.

[lastminutemom]

I don't disagree about the commute, but test scores are only part of the story. High socio-economic kids (like those found at Austin, etc) are going to score very well on state tests. It is about resources, etc. DeKalb elementary schools are generally under resourced as compared to other counties.

Last summer alone, nearly 500 teachers left DeKalb. And that doesn't include those who didn't renew in the Spring (100s) and those that have continued to leave during the school year.

It is important to visit and get a feel for the school, its culture and its academic philosophies.

[Tito_d]

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

Last summer alone, nearly 500 teachers left DeKalb. And that doesn't include those who didn't renew in the Spring (100s) and those that have continued to leave during the school year.

It is important to visit and get a feel for the school, its culture and its academic philosophies.

I think 500 is probably a low number for a school system the size of Dekalb county with 8,500 teachers. The national attrition rate for teachers is 16.8% for non-urban schools and for 20% urban school systems according to NTCAF, so one should expect an attrition rate of 1800. We can expect the attrition to be higher next year based on the new state teacher evaluation that weigh student performance.

I agree that it's important to visit the area and the schools to get an idea.

[lastminutemom]

Originally Posted by Tito_d

I think 500 is probably a low number for a school system the size of Dekalb county with 8,500 teachers. The national attrition rate for teachers is 16.8% for non-urban schools and for 20% urban school systems according to NTCAF, so one should expect an attrition rate of 1800. We can expect the attrition to be higher next year based on the new state teacher evaluation that weigh student performance.

I agree that it's important to visit the area and the schools to get an idea.

Those are just the ones that left after they signed the contract. The total number last year was higher than the expected rate. It will be worse this year, since Gwinnett is hiring 900 new teachers and DCSS won't tell teachers their salaries until late June.

And yes, visiting is the most important.

[TripTychTwo]

Originally Posted by MIAtoATL

Although the Morningside/Va-Hi area is certainly convenient to work, we are concerned it's "city living" and we would miss the amenities of the suburbs and the activities for the kids (pools, soccer, etc).

Morningside is your best bet. It is a 10 minute car-ride to midtown and a true family suburb within minutes of the core. There are tons of families in this neighborhood and plenty of options for children. It's a very desirable neighborhood with Morningside Elementary being within walking distance for most. If you want pools Ansley (private) is 3 minutes away, Piedmont and Garden Hills are public pools that many families in the neighborhood utilize.

Morningside has tons of character, puts you right next to Piedmont Park, the Beltline and Midtown. It's (in my biased opinion) the best neighborhood in Atlanta. For 1.2 Million, you can buy on one of the better streets and have a ton of space and a great yard.

Dunwoody is nice, if you like suburban, chains, lots of parking lots and horrible traffic. I ride my bike into Midtown for work through the park, it takes 15 minutes, or 10 minutes in the car. Dunwoody would be 30 minutes, without traffic. Good luck!