Moving to Irvine, CA from Louisville, CO for better schools (Boulder: condo, crime)

[DaveHope]

Hi,

We have been in CO for a decade now after moving from Irvine, CA. Love it here, except the cold weather is something that we haven't acclimated well to, also the main focus for us right now is, better education for our kid (so we are wanting to move).

We are contemplating if we should move back to Irvine, because it has great schools plus it is much more diverse than CO schools (overall). To be precise we fall under BVSD Boulder Valley school district) right now. Our kid still has to start elementary in an year from now, so its crucial for us to make sure we have a spot in the place, where we want to settle in.

However, we are very confused as we have no knowledge, whatsoever, about which schools and school districts are best when we do CA vs CO or to be precise Irvine vs Boulder. We do know, that we want diversity, a good amount of competition and strong focus on academics rather than extra curricular activities.

It will be great if you guys can shed some light on the school system in Superior/Louisville and if you have any experience about CO schools vs CA schools, it would highly appreciated.

Thank You!

[OhioToCO]

You probably have to find someone who lived and experienced both CO and CA schools. Schools vary depending on a school district A LOT, and schools within the same school district can be quite different also.

There are a lot of threads on BVSD schools. Louisville has great elementary and middle schools, Monarch High has good reputation as well.
I have a friend who lives in Orange County, and while the schools are good, she was telling me about some financial challenges pubic schools in California face. For example, her kids had no music education and one PE lesson a week, lead by a volunteer. (PE and arts tend to be the first things to be cut)

Colorado has open enrollment, so in theory you can enroll your child in any school. Most popular schools tend to have a lottery, though. Personally, I'm very happy with BVSD. My older son is about to graduate from Fairview. He did full IB diploma, lots of challenging courses, good teachers. My younger one is at Summit Middle school (charter school in Boulder). We are all impressed with how much they learn there. He was at Heatherwood elementary before (nothing special, but a solid neighborhood elementary).

Personally, I wouldn't move just because of schools. If you like OC better than Colorado Front Range, I totally understand, but I wouldn't make schools the deciding factor, not with the quality of schools in Boulder Valley.

[Kissum]

Hello from California! We're in the Bay area, but we just considered Irvine, my husband is actually there working right now. We actually ruled it out because of the schools. Schools throughout the whole state are currently very overcrowded: 1 teacher to as many as 35 kids. Extras such as art and music have been cut from a lot of programs. Now, the Irvine schools look excellent on paper. High test scores and great ratings! I like to say- theoretically excellent. I think the best bet is to find someone who has or has had children in the schools. We talked to several parents, and we heard that there is a lot of standardized testing and that the children are taught to that. As in, they becoming excellent at picking out the correct answer on a multiple choice test, but perhaps cannot functionally solve the problems when given a piece of paper and no answers to choose from.

Now, whether that is a California specific issue or a nation wide problem as schools focus more on the testing, that's a whole different conversation. It would definitely be worth talking to someone who is there, but we did not find any parents who were happy with the schools when we asked around.

[boulder2015]

Originally Posted by DaveHope

Hi,

We have been in CO for a decade now after moving from Irvine, CA. Love it here, except the cold weather is something that we haven't acclimated well to, also the main focus for us right now is, better education for our kid (so we are wanting to move).

We are contemplating if we should move back to Irvine, because it has great schools plus it is much more diverse than CO schools (overall). To be precise we fall under BVSD Boulder Valley school district) right now. Our kid still has to start elementary in an year from now, so its crucial for us to make sure we have a spot in the place, where we want to settle in.

However, we are very confused as we have no knowledge, whatsoever, about which schools and school districts are best when we do CA vs CO or to be precise Irvine vs Boulder. We do know, that we want diversity, a good amount of competition and strong focus on academics rather than extra curricular activities.

It will be great if you guys can shed some light on the school system in Superior/Louisville and if you have any experience about CO schools vs CA schools, it would highly appreciated.

Thank You!

If you are asian, i understand the diversity part. Aside from that, this is a foolish move. Schools are great in boulder county, though admittedly not that diverse.

[hooverphonics]

Not sure about the schools but I don't understand why Louisville was voted greatest town or whatever it was called -- it is nice enough and the people are fine but the restaurants aren't that great, no good cheap food, exceedingly white and Amerukin, the traffic gets worse every day, and they put up new clapboard developments overnight (that though cheap and cookie cutter go for 600+) that drive out the prairie dogs and ruin open space and the COL goes up up up. Lots of little towns like this but with more history and character in the NE so what's the big deal about Louisville?? It does have a good bakery though.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by hooverphonics

Not sure about the schools but I don't understand why Louisville was voted greatest town or whatever it was called -- it is nice enough and the people are fine but the restaurants aren't that great, no good cheap food, exceedingly white and Amerukin, the traffic gets worse every day, and they put up new clapboard developments overnight (that though cheap and cookie cutter go for 600+) that drive out the prairie dogs and ruin open space and the COL goes up up up. Lots of little towns like this but with more history and character in the NE so what's the big deal about Louisville?? It does have a good bakery though.

??? I don't know what you mean about "cheap restaurants". There's a Burger King and a McDonald's; Mudrock's in the Walgreen's shopping center is fairly inexpensive, especially during happy hour. Most of the other restaurants aren't expensive, though they're not cheap, either. Yes, pretty while American. Traffic? In a town of 20,000? The only new developments I'm aware of are Steel Ranch (patio homes) and a few condo complexes. There haven't been any other big housing developments since the 90s.

[RosieSD]

I'm a retired school counselor (high school level) in California and also a parent of grown kids. Do you have other reasons for wanting to return to California, such as a career opportunity, or family close by, or just preferring the weather?

If not, I wouldn't move just on some assumption that the schools somewhere else will be magically better. If your child will be attending a horrible, inner city school that is crime ridden and filled with students from disadvantaged backgrounds in Colorado, then maybe. But, if your child will attend a normal, suburban elementary school in a middle to upper middle class neighborhood, chances are excellent that they will get a very similar educational experience whether you are in California or Colorado.

The truth is that the vast majority of elementary schools in such a neighborhood will have caring and concerned teachers and administrators who want to do the best for their students (actually the same is true in those inner city schools too; the students just have bigger hurdles to jump over). Your child will likely have some teachers they (or you) like better than others, but that's OK: we all have to learn to get along with people who aren't our favorites, and work hard even when we don't feel perfectly happy. That's PART of being "academically successful" and "competitive."

And, the vast majority of elementary schools in such a neighborhood will also be filled with students whose parents are caring and involved and want the same things for their kids that you do. Get involved with the school, volunteer in your child's classroom, encourage your child to respect their teachers, find things to do as a family to enrich what your child is learning in school. Meet other parents, find ones who seem to have similar philosophies about raising their kids, and schedule play dates. Read to your child, delight in the delight they take in learning at this age, help them develop self-control and a concern for others, and most of all, have fun together as a family.

These are the things that matter most at the elementary school level. Your child can experience these things in most elementary schools, whether they be in Colorado or California.

So, for right now, I'd think more about your other reasons for wanting to move -- if they are important enough to pull you back to Irvine (or somewhere else in California), go for it. But, don't think you have to move to get your child a "better" education. The tools you need are likely already right in your own home and the neighborhood school in your back yard.

Good luck with your decision about moving. You sound like very caring and involved parents, so I am sure that where ever you decide is best to live, your child will get a solid education and be happy and successful later in life.