Public Middle Schools for "Smart" students with ADHD (Dallas: cheap apartment, rent)

[AsterixOnAnObelisk]

***EDIT***
I hit send too soon. The title should be 'Public middle schools for "Smart" students with ADHD'.
***EDIT***

I’m looking for advice on public school districts for two students, who are in 5th and 6th grade. For the last two years, they have attended one of the well-known private learning-disability schools in Dallas. They get excellent grades in the not at all academically rigorous school and scored well above grade level on the Stanford Achievement test, although I have no idea if that is a high-quality test. They were recently evaluated at Children’s Medical and found to have IQs in the 130-140 range, ADHD, and no learning disabilities. The ADHD is now being treated and both students’ attentiveness in class has improved. They are smart and curious people, but they lack the kind of organization, competitiveness, and intrinsic motivation that is necessary to gain entry to and succeed at the high-quality private schools in the area.

The diagnosing doctor strongly advised us that they are in the wrong school and that we should move them into the DISD immediately and apply for magnet schools. As far as I can tell, the deadline for the Fall 2024 school year TAG admissions has passed, so the earliest they could start would be Fall 2025, assuming they pass the entrance exams. The DISD magnet schools have impressive rankings, but our zoned middle school is C ranked. Considering that these students may not actually qualify for magnets (or that only one of them would), I think they might be better off in a different school district, where the non-magnet schools are better ranked.

After looking at district websites and searching this forum, I think the Richardson or Lewisville school districts might be a good fit for this kind of student, but I’m not sure. Friends have recommended Garland and Lovejoy but didn’t have first-hand experience with either.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[inthemstreets]

The DISD magnet deadline is Jan 31. Travis and Sudie will have the most competitive admissions but there are other middle school magnets that are worth a look. Longfellow, DESA, and Trinity Heights are among the possibilities.

https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/56903

[AsterixOnAnObelisk]

Originally Posted by inthemstreets

The DISD magnet deadline is Jan 31. Travis and Sudie will have the most competitive admissions but there are other middle school magnets that are worth a look. Longfellow, DESA, and Trinity Heights are among the possibilities.

https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/56903

Oh my goodness, that's a huge help ,thank you. I didn't realize they accepted other test scores and assumed that because the kids weren't attending DISD during the STAAR testing period that they would have to wait.

[texstout]

Originally Posted by AsterixOnAnObelisk

Oh my goodness, that's a huge help ,thank you. I didn't realize they accepted other test scores and assumed that because the kids weren't attending DISD during the STAAR testing period that they would have to wait.

Nope - my kids were at a private before a TAG magnet. Lots of kids move over from privates. My oldest has severe ADHD and was successful there and is now doing well in AP/pre-IB HS. They are competitive for admissions - but i have known kids who entered in the MS years as there is a bit of movement then. Worth a try.

[ChristieP]

Just so you know, your kids generally can't attend public schools in a district where you do not reside. (Some districts allow adjoining districts' students to pay tuition, but this is the exception rather than the norm.) If you want to change public school districts, you will need to sell your house and move. No, you cannot just rent a cheap apartment and use that address to allow your kids to attend school.

[AsterixOnAnObelisk]

Originally Posted by texstout

Nope - my kids were at a private before a TAG magnet. Lots of kids move over from privates. My oldest has severe ADHD and was successful there and is now doing well in AP/pre-IB HS. They are competitive for admissions - but i have known kids who entered in the MS years as there is a bit of movement then. Worth a try.

That's also quite helpful, thanks. I was going to ask a follow-up question about whether ADHD is automatically disqualifying,but it appears that it isn't.

[AsterixOnAnObelisk]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

Just so you know, your kids generally can't attend public schools in a district where you do not reside. (Some districts allow adjoining districts' students to pay tuition, but this is the exception rather than the norm.) If you want to change public school districts, you will need to sell your house and move. No, you cannot just rent a cheap apartment and use that address to allow your kids to attend school.

Yes, of course. It would be theft to attend a school district where one does not meet the criteria for admission.


My assumption has been I will have to move into a better district and pay taxes there like everyone else.

[AsterixOnAnObelisk]

We've started the application process, fingers crossed. If they get in, that's great, we're good to go for several years at least.

If they don't, the options will be:
A. Stay in DISD, put them in our zoned C-ranked middle school and reapply for magnet schools next fall.
B. Move to a school district with A or B ranked middle schools.

I think option B makes more sense. Does anybody have any recommendations for districts that might work well for this kind of student?

I'm trying to get the research done now, ahead of house selling season, instead getting bad news in March and then rushing into a poorly thought out decision.

Thanks again.

[ChristieP]

What's your budget for housing?
Where do you commute to for work?

[AsterixOnAnObelisk]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

What's your budget for housing?
Where do you commute to for work?

If I've estimated mortgage rate, property taxes, and insurance correctly, I think I could manage as much as 1.75MM, although that doesn't go nearly as far as it used to.

I commute to downtown, but I work in an industry where a lot of the work is done out of the office and outside of normal business hours. Consequently, management doesn't care about normal 8-5 office hours. We have people who commute from all over the DFW area, including the far north Dallas exurbs and the Fort Worth suburbs. I'd prefer a normal commute, but my preferences don't really matter. As long as I'm not driving in from Waco or Tyler, it'll be fine.