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Old 04-04-2011, 05:03 PM
 
5 posts, read 26,333 times
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I will be relocating to Alpharetta at the end of May with my husband and children from California. We purchased a home in Country Club of the South and have been renovating it and luckily we heard we have been accepted to Woodward Academy(main campus) and The Wesleyan School. We have four children(we are a blended family) two sons entering seventh grade, a daughter entering fifth grade, and a son entering third grade. I was wondering if there is anybody out there that could compare both schools? We are Presbyterians but religion in the school is not essential to us we would chose education and extracurriculars over religion in the school. Both of the schools have buses so transportation is not a big deal but Wesleyan is much closer but we believe Woodward is the better option, but it is kind of far(it is really the only negative of Woodward). They are currently enrolled in a private school outside of LA and I would say it is more similar to Woodward than Wesleyan.


So Woodward or Wesleyan and why?


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Old 04-04-2011, 05:12 PM
 
Location: Dunwoody,GA
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I responded to another poster about this issue, but here it goes. If religion (of the evangelical variety) is not a priority for you, I would probably steer away from Wesleyan. My experience with the school is that it is moving closer and closer to evangelical doctrine, and they seem more and more interested in moving students (even their non-Christian students) toward that doctrine. Although Wesleyan is very convenient to where we live, we chose not to apply due to what we perceived as a very fundamentalist approach to education. Obviously, this is not an issue at Woodward as it is a non-denominational school. Just my opinion, but be aware that religion plays a large role in the curriculum at Wesleyan.
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Old 04-04-2011, 05:29 PM
 
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Yeah we are not a big fan of the evangelical movement, if you get what I am saying! That was one of the things that surprised us about Wesleyan since we expected it to be a Christian school, but not this Christian. Apparently many people do commute from the north to Woodward so it must not be that bad?
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Old 04-04-2011, 07:04 PM
 
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Both are great schools but I would choose Woodward for its stellar reputation and strong college placement. Good luck with your decision and welcome to Atlanta!
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Old 04-05-2011, 06:25 AM
 
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I might send the youngest two to Woodward North so they have a chance to meet neighborhood kids and make some friends that live nearby.

As a private school parent, just so you know I mean no offense, you are aware that those are strong public schools up there and that this is an option in your case.

The huge disadvantages to Woodward are its location and the geographic dispersity of the student body. Kids come from north of Alpharetta to an hour south or more on the campus. My son's best friends' girlfriend was from near West Point GA.

In addition, you and your spouse need to figure out how you will balance extracurricular activity transportation from Woodward as your older two age. They may or may not be in the same activities. There are late buses for practices, but competitions, etc kids have to be picked up at school or at the event.

Keep in mind, that many of Woodward's opponents may be even further away as the schools are south.

(I have no idea if your child is an athlete but my son's friend was.)
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Old 04-05-2011, 07:01 AM
 
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As a mom of two teens, I would have a difficult time living as far away from school as you will be from Woodward. Though the bus takes care of daily transportation, there will still be the driving back and forth to friend's houses, picking up late from other activites, wanting to go in early for extra help... You and your husband will shoulder this driving for the next few years, but then there will be pressure from your kids to drive themselves either to school or school related activities when they are 16 and that just seems stressful and risky.

I think I might give Weslyan a try and see if it would work for your family - if not, I would consider applying out to another private school (if that is your choice) that wasn't on the other side of the city.

By the way, many families in Atlanta who go the private school route have children in different schools. It is becoming more and more the norm to NOT have all your children in the same school.
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Old 04-05-2011, 08:23 AM
 
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I found that with private schools, your children will always choose kids who live the furthest away from you as their best friends. Add cost of gas (not insignificant these days) to the cost of private school.
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Old 04-05-2011, 10:17 AM
 
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I graduated relatively recently from a private school (mid-2000s) and had friends at Woodward and Wesleyan. Personally, I would choose Wesleyan. Woodward is certainly more established, but both are in the top tier. Woodward is just too far from CCOS.

You need to consider the fact that since everyone lives all over the place, there tends to be one area that becomes the default location for social gatherings on the weekend. Wesleyan kids usually hung around the Ingles on Peachtree Parkway across from the school, or at someone's house in Peachtree Corners. Woodward kids usually hung out at the Paces Ferry Publix off 75 or at people's houses in Buckhead. Basically, what I'm trying to say is that if you choose Woodward, most of the social events will be in Buckhead, whereas for Wesleyan, they will be in North Fulton/Peachtree Corners. Do you want you kid having to drive 25 minutes or 5 minutes to go out with friends?

As for my experience with Wesleyan religiousness: while a lot of the kids are Southern Baptists, there are also a lot of other Protestant kids and even some Catholics. My friends were all normal, and while they said it was religious, it wasn't to the point where they thought it was weird or made them want to leave.
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Old 04-05-2011, 11:14 AM
 
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My children went to both the North and main campus. I also live in CCOS. Wesleyan is looked at as a religious school. Woodward is a college prep school with great resources and preparation for college placement. The parent's worry more about the commute than the kids. There are buses and carpools(especially for weekend events) and it didn't seem to be a problem. By the time they are in 10th grade, they drive to school. Most of my son's friends lived in Buckhead but there was always a parent going that way. My children received an excellent education from Woodward and they are excelling in college.
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Old 04-05-2011, 10:51 PM
 
16,626 posts, read 29,278,105 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lastminutemom View Post
...
As a private school parent, just so you know I mean no offense, you are aware that those are strong public schools up there and that this is an option in your case.

...
Barnwell Elementary, Autry Mill Middle, and Johns Creek High.


Johns Creek High School

JCHS : Home

Autrey Mill Middle School

AMMS Home

Barnwell Elementary School

Barnwell Elementary School

http://portal.fultonschools.org/depa...eekHS_1011.pdf

http://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/Operations/Operational_Planning/Documents/ZoneMaps/MS/AutreyMillMS_1011.pdf (broken link)

http://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/Operations/Operational_Planning/Documents/ZoneMaps/ES/BarnwellES_1011.pdf (broken link)

http://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/Operations/Operational_Planning/Documents/ZoneMaps/LargeMap_NFSS_ES_1011.pdf (broken link)

http://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/Operations/Operational_Planning/Documents/ZoneMaps/LargeMap_NFSS_MS_1011.pdf (broken link)

http://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/Operations/Operational_Planning/Documents/ZoneMaps/LargeMap_NFSS_HS_1011.pdf (broken link)

http://portal.fultonschools.org/depa...feeder1112.pdf

Fulton County Schools Home
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