More hip area with good public schools?

[readytomove123]

Thank you all so much for all of the feedback so far. I guess I'm trying to get a feel for if there is an area with balance in terms of strong teachers/administration and also diversity. Test performance doesn't necessarily show that, and high performing schools are often high performing because they are pre-selecting (rich white kids tend to do well on standardized tests).

I don't want my children to be surrounded by "bad influences" as far as violence, gangs, etc. obviously, but also not be surrounded by "what kind of car does your mom drive?" type people, which are equally bad influences in their own way, in my opinion. I am not saying everyone in Mt. P is like that, of course!! But I would like my children to have personal experiences with all different types of people.

This maybe goes more into a philosophical discussion about the impact of parenting vs schools, and I'm not trying to go there. There is something to be said for the relief of going to Mt. P because I don't have to worry about which school my kids get into. How diverse/accepting is Mt. P? For example, my 3 year old son loves to wear his sister's tutu to preschool. Will that get the side-eye in Mt P?

[Ziggy100]

Originally Posted by readytomove123

Thank you all so much for all of the feedback so far. I guess I'm trying to get a feel for if there is an area with balance in terms of strong teachers/administration and also diversity. Test performance doesn't necessarily show that, and high performing schools are often high performing because they are pre-selecting (rich white kids tend to do well on standardized tests).

I don't want my children to be surrounded by "bad influences" as far as violence, gangs, etc. obviously, but also not be surrounded by "what kind of car does your mom drive?" type people, which are equally bad influences in their own way, in my opinion. I am not saying everyone in Mt. P is like that, of course!! But I would like my children to have personal experiences with all different types of people.

This maybe goes more into a philosophical discussion about the impact of parenting vs schools, and I'm not trying to go there. There is something to be said for the relief of going to Mt. P because I don't have to worry about which school my kids get into. How diverse/accepting is Mt. P? For example, my 3 year old son loves to wear his sister's tutu to preschool. Will that get the side-eye in Mt P?

Not in preschool, but by high school that's going to get a side-eye pretty much anywhere around here. Diversity in general doesn't necessarily mean acceptance.
Preschools in Mt P give me more of a hippy vibe than anything else.

Contrary to popular belief, Mount Pleasant isn't just wall to wall mansions with kids driving BMWs to school. Take a drive down Rifle Range sometime. You can find million dollar homes within walking distance of Gullah settlement communities that are all zoned for the same schools. It's public school, so you're gonna get diversity either way.
I honestly don't get a rich kid vibe from the kids leaving the Wando parking lot. Some are driving busted old cars, some are driving lifted pickup trucks, some are riding bikes, and some are driving daddy's brand new Audi. Just like in the real world.

You might also want to look at Dorchester 2 in Summerville.

[WiseManOnceSaid]

Most of the more affluent kids in Mt Pleasant go to private schools anyways. That's how it is in any community where there's a larger scale of millionaires, the millionaires tend to go private.