[usmcfamily]

Originally Posted by Stratford, Ct. Resident

With regard to Norwalk, i'm not aware of any violence epidemic in their high schools. With regard to Stratford, i haven't the slightest idea what you're referring to, but if you can provide some examples, i'd be very interested in reading them. Perhaps you're confusing Stratford with another municipality?

Read the front page of todays Conn. Post! Both high schools have been plagued with violence.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by usmcfamily

Read the front page of todays Conn. Post! Both high schools have been plagued with violence.

Both schools? Where does it say that?

Yes, apparently there was a stabbing incident at Stratford High. To what degree did this incident escalate to? Was the school locked down? I'd like more details from other, more reliable and complete sources than the Ct. Post before i form an opinion.

Yes, there was a fight a few weeks ago between 2 students at Stratford High. Interestingly, News12 presented a much different account than the Ct. Post did, of the latter incident. News12 presented it as a simple no weapon fight between 2 students, not a "riot", as the Ct. Post tried to allude to.

I still don't see where 2 "incidents" forms a historical plague of violence.

[InNeedOfAnswers]

Why not Milford? Milford is one of the better towns in the area. There are nice parks and you can live on the coast. My friend lived right on the sound which was great, and there were many kids around.

I lived in Orange, BTW a nice town to live in and your kids will get to go to very good high school. You should also check out Woodbridge & Bethany, very nice towns. There is a shopping mall in Milford and RT 1 is full of stores. In fact too many if you ask me. Down RT 15 you will find more big malls. CT is small so anywhere you go there is plenty of shopping.

Difference between Milford and Orange is that Milford is more populated, Orange has developped RT 1, but residential part is sparse as you get closer to Woodbridge. Woodbridge & Bethany are expensive but very nice places to live. People joke that there are more horses in Bethany than people.

I would highly discurrage you to choose a place to live where you have to use I-95 or RT-15. You will be in non-stop traffic. I call I-95 "the longest parking lot in the world", and hate it! Person who designed I-95 through CT should be executed ...

It is better to look inland and use roads like 121 to get to Milford, anyway go check it out.

[JayCT]

First of all, Norwalk would be a kind of unnessarally long commute to Milford. There are nicer, more affordable towns near Milford and Norwalk schools are known to have issues. Trumbull would be good but it is pricey too. Shelton and Monroe are only slightly less expensive.

I would recommend Orange and Milford. Orange has excellent schools and some very nice homes in your price range. I am not sure what you expect to get for your money though. Milford schools are very good and the town has a wide range of housing options. You will get a bit more home there than in Orange for your price. Hope this helps. Jay

[nico7]

Out of everything mentioned, Orange seems the most reasonable option to me. The school district has an excellent reputation, and (judging only by reputation) is a bit better than Milford's school district, which is still very good. However, as Jay mentioned, you might not get as much house for your money in Orange, compared with Milford. If education is more important to you than square feet, I would say Orange is the place for you.

[andthentherewere3]

I would agree with looking into Orange. I do want to point out though, if you still wish to consider towns such as Monroe and Trumbull, the commute to Milford via Rt. 15 would not be too bad, as you would be traveling north against the traffic in the a.m. The traffic is heaviest heading southbound to the Stamford/NYC area in the mornings, and north in the evenings. From my house in SE Monroe, it takes me 20 minutes to get to Rt. 1 in Milford, 25 minutes to the mall. But the commute from Orange would be quicker, and it's a great town.

[samoyed1]

You can't go wrong with Milford or Orange. If you love the ocean and the beach like I do Milford is a great choice and the city has so much to offer your family. Orange is a great choice too with excellent schools. Both are no brainers especially if your husband will be working in Milford. I would research both. I work in Norwalk and you couldn't pay me to live there. Why pay the higher prices to live in that area plus deal with a commute when your husband will be employed in Milford. It makes no sense. I have lived in Milford for almost 18 years. My wife and I are in our second home. When we sold our first house not only did we look in Millford we also considered Orange. We looked at properties in both locations. When it came down to the move we decided a home on the water in Milford was more appealing than a home in the woods in Orange.
Plus our first 8 years in Milford was truly wonderful. I don't think you can go wrong with either one.
Just my 2 Cents.

[usmcfamily]

Originally Posted by Stratford, Ct. Resident

Both schools? Where does it say that?

Yes, apparently there was a stabbing incident at Stratford High. To what degree did this incident escalate to? Was the school locked down? I'd like more details from other, more reliable and complete sources than the Ct. Post before i form an opinion.

Yes, there was a fight a few weeks ago between 2 students at Stratford High. Interestingly, News12 presented a much different account than the Ct. Post did, of the latter incident. News12 presented it as a simple no weapon fight between 2 students, not a "riot", as the Ct. Post tried to allude to.

I still don't see where 2 "incidents" forms a historical plague of violence.

Not only do Stratford schools have poor test scores, there are serious issues in the schools. Today's front cover of the Ct Post has very alarming statistics regarding Stratford teens:

20% (1 in 5) carry a weapon for protection
49% were threatened by other teens
37% had sexual intercourse.

The article states Stratford teens attempt suicide, drink alcohol, use illegal drugs and engage in more risky behavior than those in other area communities.

The OP's main priorities were excellent schools for their children. Its great you love where you live but excellent schools - no - not by a long shot. The kids themselves are saying they do not feel safe! Thats it for me on this topic!

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by usmcfamily

20% (1 in 5) carry a weapon for protection
49% were threatened by other teens
37% had sexual intercourse.

The article states Stratford teens attempt suicide, drink alcohol, use illegal drugs and engage in more risky behavior than those in other area communities.

There really isn't a way to tell if these stats are true - far too often, newspapers print "stats" that are completed by one private group. The only way to obtain these stats are by random sampling, surveys and interviews, both of which are not accurate methods to conduct a proper study. They are acceptable to many, but not accurate. Also, kids do tend to lie and exaggerate the truth.

I attended one of the state's 'top' districts and you'd be surprised at the amount of [white] kids who were addicts and carried brass knuckles. I can say from experience that the wealthier kids are no different than the rest - sometimes they're worse.

I'm not saying these stats are necessarily wrong, just the methodology. Stratford is not a bad town to live. The town is middle class and diverse, simply what people in CT are not used to! JMO

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by usmcfamily

Not only do Stratford schools have poor test scores, there are serious issues in the schools.

I still don't see anything posted by you that backs up your earlier assertion that Stratford schools have a history of violence. Please present your evidence.

Originally Posted by usmcfamily

The OP's main priorities were excellent schools for their children. Its great you love where you live but excellent schools - no - not by a long shot.

I've never stated that i love where i live, nor have i stated that the school system is excellent. If you'll take the opportunity to review some of my numerous posts since i joined C-D, this will be quite obvious.

Originally Posted by usmcfamily

The kids themselves are saying they do not feel safe! Thats it for me on this topic!

Let's conduct a test. The test is reading comprehension. Let's see how many of us can pass the test. Here's a link to the full story also:
Student arrested in Stratford stabbing - The Connecticut Post Online

O.K., the Post states that a student who was being taunted "stabbed" his harasser in the back with a "spring-loaded knife". Do we agree, so far?

Now, let's look carefully at what occurred after the incident. The "attacker" was arrested and released the following day on a "Promise To Appear". Wouldn't you think that something is wrong with this picture? A violent attacker should be required to post some type of bail/bond, right?

But wait, here's an interesting tidbit in the the article:

"The victim, who was not identified, was treated for a minor wound in the nurse's office, police said."

This is simply amazing! The school nurse's office is capable of treating someone who has been stabbed with a knife? The Stratford school system never gave a thought as to how litigous our society is, and sent the victim to the hospital for treatment so as not to be liable for scarring or infection caused by this "stabbing"?

If you've figured out that the taunted student poked the other student in the back with a penknife, step to the head of the class.

For those who haven't figured it out now, stick to reading papers like the National Enquirer.