McNeil HS vs. WestWood HS? (Austin, Round Rock: house, buy, middle schools)

[zhezhe]

We live in RRISD and in general like our schools. Our kids are still in elementary school and they suppose to go to McNeil HS. Some of my friends move to NW Austin, so their kids can go to Westwood HS. I am wondering if anyone has some solid comparison for these two schools on both academics and sports etc.

Thanks.

[achtungpv]

It's nicknamed Wastewood for a reason. :-)

[Othon]

From what I've heard, Westwood is stronger both academically and athletically, although that's just from what I've heard.

[pvaustin]

Originally Posted by achtungpv

It's nicknamed Wastewood for a reason. :-)

hmm..
I thought Westwood was rated better than McNeil in many aspects

[achtungpv]

Originally Posted by pvaustin

hmm..
I thought Westwood was rated better than McNeil in many aspects

Westwood's a great school but those kids are known for have an above average party scene.

[macmommy]

You might try schooldigger.com or greatschools.com to get more of an idea.

My husband works at McNeil and loves it. The kids are great...typical HS kids, with the typical HS kid problems, but it's fine. It is a very big school.

Westwood is known for some party-lifestyle, but it's not as crazy as people think. It is academically challenging and very competitive. They had a better football season this year than McNeil, but I think on most other sports, pretty equal.

I think either choice is a good choice. We're planning on sending our kids to either one, depending on how the schools change between now & that time. They're on track to go to WW, but we'll see. It also depends on where their dad is teaching (most likely McN, but who knows? It's a long time! We could be in Podunkville, Utah by then!)

I definitely think WW did better on TAKS. But you also have to consider if you want your kids in a more cutthroat environment, grade-wise. There are some intangibles.

I personally would investigate your middle school first. That will be happening a lot sooner! If it's not what you had in mind, then you have more info before you decide to move just based on HS.

It's good that you have been happy with your elementary school. I hope your kids are having a great end-of-the-year!

[traceyr13]

Thank you so much for posting this macmommy! As a former high school English teacher myself, I really trust/value teacher input as to how the school "really" is. We have been looking at schools that feed into McNeil, so it was great to hear your husband's input.

Any thoughts on middle schools? I seem to hear a lot about elementary schools, and some on high schools, but middle schools seem to be that forgotten middleman, lol. The areas we are looking at tend to go to Deerpark, although we are zoned for Grisham right now.

[macmommy]

If you look only at stats,
1.Canyon Vista
2.Cedar Valley
3. Grisham
4. Deerpark

I will talk to my husband about it later, but the last time we talked about it, the kids from Cedar Valley and Deerpark liked their middle schools. I haven't heard anything about Grisham, but maybe he has.

I also have to say...you can't count too much on zoning anymore, LOL. It changes every other year, it seems. I have a 20 yr old niece, 17 yr old nephew and 15 yr old nephew. Of these kids, the youngest nephew went to three different elementary schools, and they only moved once. His sister graduated from Stony Point and the middle one went to SP for a year (well, the yucky 9th grade center) and now the boys are at Round Rock HS. It's got to be a nightmare for the administration to deal with all the time.

As a former English teacher, would you please forgive my grammar (or lack thereof)?

[traceyr13]

LOL! No problem. I'm in higher education now, and am often totally surprised at the lack of grammar skills in people with PhDs! So nothing phases me!

Thanks so much. We are also looking at Great Oaks elementary/Cedar Valley middle school, and I have heard really good things about those schools, but not sure where we will find the house we want. I would prefer to get more south instead of parallel (we're in Avery Ranch right now, so the above schools would not get us ANY closer to the city) but I also want good schools. It's hard...

Thanks for the feedback! If he has anything more to say about Deerpark, let me know!

[getaroomba]

As an actual Westwood student, I DO NOT RECOMMEND SENDING YOUR KIDS TO WESTWOOD. The school has broken so many kids that we have an anxiety/depression department. Westwood is not a party school at all. It is built like a college and the education is top notch, but the on level classes are worse than the AP classes at McN. If your student drops down to on level after freshman year (which, let's be honest, they will if they want to be able to pursue happiness). Even once your student does, the teachers who s/he gets will hate your student for not understanding the material. I struggle in math so I'm in on level algebra and I have a friend who keeps failing quizzes. You can redo them, which she does, but when she asks questions the teacher will tell her to do it herself. One time when she failed a test the teacher told her she was never going to get into college.
Westwood is also notorious for weed sales. I know so many dealers, it's ridiculous. I'VE SEEN TEACHERS BUY WEED FROM THE STUDENTS. The weed distribution is due to students self medicating against stress. Also, a lot of people have sex in the bathrooms.
I'm in all AP classes except math and I am bullied by the kids who are better at math than me. I have a really hard time meeting people who aren't depressed at westwood. Just last week, one of my friends went to shoal creek (a psychiatric hospital) and switched to McN and she says she has never made a better decision. DO NOT SEND YOUR KIDS TO HELL.