78704 Elementary schools (Austin, Dawson: transfer, school district, subsidized)

[future_itisnow]

I am looking for some opinions and stories from from parents who have sent their children to the public elementary schools located in the 78704 area code. My spouse and I visited the area recently and fell in love with Barton Hills, Bouldin Creek, South Congress, etc for a variety of reason but mostly it's proximity to downtown and the green belt.

I am looking for something beyond the usual 'this school is rated as exemplary, etc' i can find data online. I am less concerned about how students test out in exams than i am that the schools have well rounded curriculum and are safe. Which of the schools are better in 78704, and for what reasons, etc.

Please share

[achtungpv]

A good friend's kids attend Zilker Elementary and they (the parents, kids too i guess) absolutely love it. Both parents have master degrees and very high paying jobs for what it's worth...so it's not like a meth cooker and stripper parents love it.

[LookingtoLeave]

You can visit GreatSchools.net to find out more info. It also allows parents to post reviews so you can hear an unbiased opinion. Good Luck!

[centralaustinite]

In general, Barton Hills will have the highest test scores -- and the least amount of ethnic and economic diversity! And high levels of parental involvement (tends to go with higher family incomes) Zilker has a great rep -- very diverse student body, good academics, and very involved parents and community. Travis Heights serves a challenging population but with its new principal has made great strides in serving both kids from subsidized housing and kids from very well-off families. Increasing amounts of parental involvement too. Dawson, Becker, and Gallindo serve a nearly entirely Hispanic student body. Gallindo seems to serve a more middle class demographic than the other two.

Remember, you can transfer your child to any school in AISD that has slots, lots of folks live in one area and send their kids to a school somewhere else (Becker to Zilker or Dawson to Barton Hills) or send them farther afield (say, Dawson to Caisis or Highland Hills). What this means is that schools with good reps and good tests scores get more and more transfers (with involved parents as a given) and continue to make gains, while other schools find their best students (and parents) transfer out.

Good reputations linger, it takes much longer to overcome a poor one! So much depends on the principal and the teachers. Look the individual web sites of the schools and then visit them. Talk to current parents -- folks whose kids have been out of a school for even 3-4 years can be way behind what is actually happening in a school.

There are good schools in south Austin and AISD. Good Luck!

[Acuda]

Transferring can be more difficult than you think though. You cannot walk into the district office and say, "I would like to send my kids to that school." Some schools are frozen to all transfers for next year. Although, the aforementioned schools are not. Priority transfers are allowed to transfer first. These include: Sibling transfers (bro or sis go there), Tracking transfers (only from elementary to middle or middle to high- see link), and Minority-to-Majority (current school has over 50% of students ethnicity already- to promote diversity) transfers. Here is the link to transfer guidelines.

Austin Independent School District : Transfer Information (http://www.austinisd.org/academics/parentsinfo/transfer/index.phtml - broken link)