[Wanjiku]

I am looking for a town in the Hartford area with diverse and great schools. I define a great school as one where the teachers care, the kids are disciplined, safe, scoring well on tests, there is rich curricular and extra curricular activities and the parents hold education in high esteem. Our kids are small and will be in K and 1st grade. We are African and our kids are looking for kids who look like them even though they have friends from across all races. Does such a town exist? Manchester came close but then someone said the schools were not that good and it is deteriorating in terms of crime. West Hartford had good schools but seemed pricy and it depends on where you are. South Windsor looked ok. Not as diverse and our fear is that its too close to the airport so could be noisy. It this right? We will be renting (or taking over someone's mortgage who would rather not sell (any takers?) for at least a year. If we play our cards right, we would buy in the same area in a year to avoid moving schools again. Our targeted buy would be to spend max $450K but the home must be modern and that is not until a year or so. Job is towards Springfield, MA. Any leads would be appreciated.

[rajmelk]

West Hartford would definitely fit the bill in many respects, except that you will not find new housing in the < $450K range.

Also...you may be confusing South Windsor with Windsor Locks, where the airport is located. South Windsor has no issues with airplane noise.

[mlassoff]

My brother teaches in Manchester and while diverse, it seems (based on his description) very divided among racial lines. I would second West Hartford, from what I know about the area.

RE: Airplane noise. I lived for a while 3 miles from the end of the runway at Kennedy. After a week I didn't hear the airplane noise. Perhaps for certain people its easily to get used to than others.

[KH02]

It will be hard to find a town with ALOT of diversity AND excellent schools. Most of the very diverse towns are our big cities.
South Windsor would not have airplane noise, but isn't incredibly diverse, though the schools are great.

[JayCT]

I would agree with the others on West Hartford. You might also consider the northern section of Glastonbury. It has excellent schools and the Naubuc School district is diverse. We live there and found that school to be wonderful. The only problem may be the commmute but if you use I-291 you can avoid Hartford. Jay

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by JayCT

I would agree with the others on West Hartford. You might also consider the northern section of Glastonbury. It has excellent schools and the Naubuc School district is diverse. We live there and found that school to be wonderful. The only problem may be the commmute but if you use I-291 you can avoid Hartford. Jay

I would have to disagree with the suggestion of Glastonbury. It would not be considered a diverse town IMHO. West Hartford would be the OP's best bet.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

I would have to disagree with the suggestion of Glastonbury. It would not be considered a diverse town IMHO. West Hartford would be the OP's best bet.

The OP asked for schools that were excellent and diverse. I agree that West Hartford overall may be more diverse than Glastonbury but the Naubuc School in Glastonbury is also diverse. 32% of the students there are classified as a minority with 11% being African American. This meets or exceeds many of the schools in West Hartford. Jay

[Uconn97]

Originally Posted by JayCT

The OP asked for schools that were excellent and diverse. I agree that West Hartford overall may be more diverse than Glastonbury but the Naubuc School in Glastonbury is also diverse. 32% of the students there are classified as a minority with 11% being African American. This meets or exceeds many of the schools in West Hartford. Jay

Except when all the kids converge at the middle school and high school right? I would add WH as the best option, most of Glastonbury is not diverse at all.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by Uconn97

Except when all the kids converge at the middle school and high school right? I would add WH as the best option, most of Glastonbury is not diverse at all.

Yes, this is true for the overall community. Glastonbury has 14.2% minorities with 3.1% African American while West Hartford is 33.5% minority with 10% African American. Jay

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by JayCT

The OP asked for schools that were excellent and diverse. I agree that West Hartford overall may be more diverse than Glastonbury but the Naubuc School in Glastonbury is also diverse. 32% of the students there are classified as a minority with 11% being African American. This meets or exceeds many of the schools in West Hartford. Jay

Glastonbury as a whole is 96% white, I don't think it's diverse at all. JMHO