What High School - Winnetka/Hinsdale/Elmhurst (Arlington Heights, Palatine: fit in, mover)

[marlena123]

We are shopping for a house in neighborhood with very good high schools. We were till now only in private schools but since my child was bullied in very non christian way in catholic school, I figured if I have to deal with this I will do it for free. Now, we found place in Winnetka and in Hinsdale - both top education. It would be very conveniant for us to move to Winnetka (work/location) but everyone I know warns me that it is pretty closed community and to not expect we will find new firends quickly. We have some friends in Hinsdale but I'm not too sure about Hinsdale Central.
Elmhurst seems to be more on the ground but education in York seems to be even lower than in Lyons. Also, should I look at Park Ridge( no school buses) or Glenview instead?
I want education, safety, and hopefuly no bullying ( i know good luck on this one). I'm a single parent, an immigrant, solid middle class, so I'm not sure how and what community we can fit in.
Should I just give up, move to the city and find different privite school?
Please help!

[cubssoxfan]

Where is work? You will probably want to keep your commuting time to a mininum to be with your child. What can you afford? Winnetka and Hinsdale, IMO, are expensive and I would describe them as upper-middle class or wealthy towns. What about the public high school where you currently live? Sorry to hear about the bullying and kudos to you for acting to stop it.

[kindrakindra]

Lyons Township and Hinsdale are better than York. Are you not sure about Hinsdale because it is similar to Winnetka? Have you looked in LaGrange and Western Springs?

[chitown85]

If you have ever seen the tv show Swingtown, it is about Winnetka in the 1970s. Not much has changed in my opinion. It is open if you are part of the country club, Range Rover driving, CEO elite. I personally don't have anything against that lifestyle, might be nice, but that is something to consider.

To have New Trier High School, you can also move to Glencoe and Wilmette, which are burbs right next to Winnetka and Kenilworth.

Hinsdale is quite nice. Lyons is pretty good. York I don't know much about.

3 Catholic schools are: St. Viator (Arlington Heights), Carmel (Mundelein), and Loyola Academy (Wilmette?).

How come Park Ridge has no school buses?

[marlena123]

I work in Lincoln Park. I think we can fit in all of those neighborhoods. I'm worried about snobs but I don't think we can feel any worse as we do now on south side with very blue collar people bullying my kids for not being poor ... I guess it works both ways.
I think I'm down to Hinsdale Central, Lyons, and New Trier High School. I heard that New Trier will have most to offer education wise. I'm also thinking about Oak Brook - most of it still belongs to Hinsdale Central. Hinsdale seems to be bit easier because we already have friends there and we know it. The house in Winnetka on the other hand has best location to train, lake, and downtown. I just don't know a soul there. Also, I don't know how is to be viewed as a single parent in this area. I think Hinsdale might be easier on me. Any ideas?

[chet everett]

I think you better check your boundaries carefully in Oak Brook. Portions are served by HC, others by DGN, others by York, a bit by Willowbrook, a tiny sliver by Proviso West, and maybe a lot or two by some other high schools. Prices will reflect both the schools and other factors...

If you work closest to NT and the house you are considering offers the best mix of commute and other ammenities that seems an obvious choice.

I can't really judge how "easy" any community will be for a new mover / single parent, and the fact that you are moving specifically becuase of a bad situation with your child's educational experience adds additional demands of everyone -- counselors should be made aware of the previous situation and involvement from you will probably be needed.

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by marlena123

I work in Lincoln Park. I think we can fit in all of those neighborhoods. I'm worried about snobs but I don't think we can feel any worse as we do now on south side with very blue collar people bullying my kids for not being poor ... I guess it works both ways.
I think I'm down to Hinsdale Central, Lyons, and New Trier High School. I heard that New Trier will have most to offer education wise. I'm also thinking about Oak Brook - most of it still belongs to Hinsdale Central. Hinsdale seems to be bit easier because we already have friends there and we know it. The house in Winnetka on the other hand has best location to train, lake, and downtown. I just don't know a soul there. Also, I don't know how is to be viewed as a single parent in this area. I think Hinsdale might be easier on me. Any ideas?

Marlena, I think you're limiting yourself. The schools you have chosen are very good schools. But I suggest looking in Arlington Heights, Mt. Prospect, and Prospect Heights. Here is a link to the district 214 website: Parents of Township High School District 214.
Go under academics and check the courses offered. I also know the 4 schools close to me (Buffalo Grove, Hersey, Prospect and Wheeling) also offer good athletic, fine arts and music/band/orchestra programs. The area is not snobby, homes are more affordable than Hinsdale and Wilmette/Winnetka/Glencoe and the park districts and libraries are also very good.

If you still focus on New Trier, look into Northfield.

Another question: Why not Buffalo Grove that feeds into Stevenson High School?

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by chet everett

I think you better check your boundaries carefully in Oak Brook. Portions are served by HC, others by DGN, others by York, a bit by Willowbrook, a tiny sliver by Proviso West, and maybe a lot or two by some other high schools. Prices will reflect both the schools and other factors...

If you work closest to NT and the house you are considering offers the best mix of commute and other ammenities that seems an obvious choice.

I can't really judge how "easy" any community will be for a new mover / single parent, and the fact that you are moving specifically becuase of a bad situation with your child's educational experience adds additional demands of everyone -- counselors should be made aware of the previous situation and involvement from you will probably be needed.

Chet, it won't let me rep you (again), but your perspectives and insightful information are wonderful and truly add to the forum's usefulness and interest. THANKS!

[cubssoxfan]

Marlena, I re-read your OP, sorry for missing the work/location benefits of Winnetka. Have you looked into Glenbrook N & S? Deerfield? Highland Park? The schools in these communities are excellent and the commute to Winnetka would still be quite tolerable. I cannot envision commuting from Winnetka to Hinsdale, or any of the western suburbs, on a regular basis- especially being a single parent. The NW suburban schools I suggested in an earlier post may also pose commuting issues. Commuting east-west on Palatine/Willow, Dundee and Lake Cook Rd during rush hour will take anywhere from 20 mintes on a good day to 35-45 minutes on a bad day.

[marlena123]

Thank you to everyone for all good infromation. You are right - I limited myself to some areas I guess on bases of going from black to white without checking huge gray area... I don't know north too well so I will start on my research.