Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but I haven't heard anyone mention the Dallas International School. Now that seems to be a school with a lot of diversity as there are many int'l students. It is entirely in French, so the kids come out bilingual/biliterate and it is an IB programme so they come out with the IB diploma.
My kids are too old to start there (b/c of the French immersion they must be K or 1st grade when they start) but if there were younger, I would almost certainly put them there.
I think it's a haul when you're driving your kids carpool 2x a day, in additon to any other driving to kids' sports practices and other extracurricular activities, along with any work/volunteer/errands that mom does throughout the day.
Which is why I personally feel that growing up in a neighborhood and going to neighborhood schools is important. I made life-long friends and some are St. Mark's material and some are not even high school diploma material!
The friends I had who split off to go to private schools (some from Mark's/Cistercian/Hockaday and others at privates I would not endorse) have self-exiled themselves from the rest of us - we invite them to events and reunions but they don't attend. I think that is more sad for them than for us.
They may have had stellar academics (which they also could have gotten in the right classes in the local public schools) but they did not get the neighborhood experience with its own wide friendships, lore, traditions and camaraderie.
Interested to hear your final decision? Too late now but for what it is worth, I don't think public schools (no matter how good) can compete with the elite private schools. There are not enough resources, too many rules and too much bureaucracy. Plus everybody whose child (for whatever reason) can't get into private school immediately moves to HP/UP if they can afford it. There is a reason somewhere around 20% of kids in the district opt for private school. Yes I have two children in private schools. I have never had either in a public school but have friends right now with kids in UP who would rather be in my position but can't. I also know teachers in both the private and public sector. Having said all that, if your child is bright and your family is committed to education he or she will almost certainly do just fine regardless.
I know a few Mexican families attending the HP schools (elementary or Middle school), though they don't fit the stereotype (they are caucasian looking), and it is true, there is almost zero diversity in HP, almost all families are caucasian. Be careful with the High School, I have many friends who graduated from there and though it's a good school, many drive very expensive cars and every party is loaded with drugs, this information comes from many, many friends who graduated from there, not from the parents. It can happen in private schools too, but some of these parochial schools are very strict and we just hope that drug use is lower. However, the other private schools that very, very wealthy people's children attend also have a large drug problem according to students. Many of these children's parents have NO IDEA their kids use drugs, by the way.
You're right about growing up in a neighborhood, but possibly those private school friends just lost touch with their old public school friends, it happens regardless, when people switch from preschool to elementary, then to middle school, some try to stay in touch but eventually they make new friends and lose touch, sad, yes, but happens every single day. Having 3 kids in privates we are very happy with the level of education they are getting, which cannot be compared to public no matter where you are, it's been proven, I've attended classes and was very impressed with the morals, religion and academics they learn, especially at Cistercian. However, most kids will turn out all right no matter what school they attend. Private school kids also make life lasting friendships even though they grew up in different neighborhoods, it's really cool to have diversity and to know people from many different backgrounds, it makes you well-rounded by being exposed to more... xoxo
I have many friends there who are very happy, however, I met a teacher who taught there for many years and she told me that it's a great school up until 2nd grade, and that if you stay longer, that most kids have to be tutored if they are going to switch to another area private school because the curriculum is so much different, otherwise they may not do well on standardized tests... FYI...
I love it! Remember one thing... Have you ever thought about how kids turn out differently whether you come from money or private schools or not? Let me give you a great example I love. Let's compare Donald and Ivana Trump to the Hiltons. Can you compare how their children have turned out? Both billionaires beyond belief and the Trumps are exceptionally successful, private and Ivy education, ethical, hard workers, etc. (the children). Now look at Paris and Nikki, party girls, I don't even know if they went to college but I believe they went to the UBER wealthy Beverly Hills public schools, but they do drugs and make sex videos amongst other things. My point is that no matter where your kids are raised, how much money you have or don't have, public or private (though I prefer private), it's the morals you teach at home that matters at the end. It all comes from the home. I could give you many examples but if you choose what is right for each of your children and give them an incredible education at home as well, you won't go wrong... (with a few exceptions, maybe).
Lynn-
I'll leave you with this: 10 years ago, I was the 2nd to last person in my class to make the Top 25%. I had the equivelent of a 3.6 GPA (7.2 on HP's 8.0 scale). I took 2-3 Honors and AP classes each year; made 3 4's and 3 5's on the six AP tests I took. 1400 on the old SAT (2100 on today's, I think?). 780 on the Writing/Literature SAT II, low 700s on History. All that- and I ranked #78 in my class!! I applied to a Top 10 Liberal Arts college (waitlisted, never accepted), a Top 20 Liberal Arts school (accepted with about 25% tuition financial aid & academic scholarship), and one of our fine state universities (accepted with multiple academic scholarships). I chose state school over a higher ranked liberal arts school (that would have sounded more impressive) because I didn't want to sign up for $50k in studet loans to graduate from the liberal arts school. I also wasn't ready to move 1500 miles away at 18. I also wanted to be in a sorority and be involved in extracurriculars that only a state school can offer. It was all of these decisions combined that allowed me to land a great job in Manhattan after graduation- the fact I had no student loans made it easier to live in NYC on a meager startig salary, the leadership positions I held in college (managing a $750k budget for one org) were impressive on my resume and helped me get noticed, and I was finally ready to leave Texas and live somewhere else.
Many HP kids who get in to more impressive schools, choose a UT, TCU, A&M or SMU for similar reasons. Many of those kids in my class have gone onto grad school at HBS, Harvard Law, Georgetown, Duke, Johns Hopkins, Wharton, etc.
I know this is a really old thread, so I am just leaving this comment for my own therapeutic reasons, sending my two cents out into the ether. My husband and I are looking to buy a house in Dallas, so I've been checking out opinions about various neighborhoods in online forums. I have read a number of posts by TurtleCreek80, and I felt compelled to comment on this one.
I've read so many comments about the importance of considering your children's education and future when buying a house, and my husband and I, like most people, are thinking about those factors as we search for a home and prepare for what will most likely be the largest financial investment of our lives. However, my own educational experience and background highlight what I feel is a very important lesson to all potential home buyers out there.
I grew up in Garland where the school districts are less than stellar, and went to South Garland High School, which is very poorly regarded not only in the DFW area but in Garland itself. I certainly had none of the academic advantages that TurtleCreek80 benefited from in HPISD. Nevertheless, I have always been academically inclined and got the best education that I could where I was.
I noticed on another thread that TC80 specifically mentioned applying to Davidson and Vanderbilt, two schools to which I also applied. I wonder, TC80, if the "Top Ten Liberal Arts college" at which you were waitlisted and never accepted was, in fact, Davidson. If so, I find it interesting that I, a supposedly disadvantaged Garland kid, was in fact accepted to Davidson with a scholarship. It was a merit scholarship, not financially based. I was also accepted to Vandy, and to Texas A&M, where I applied as a back-up. I got a scholarship to A&M as well.
Lest you think this story is intended to boast about my academic achievements, let me move on to the second half of the tale. I ended up choosing Vandy over Davidson and A&M, a decision which was ultimately unfortunate in my particular case. I did quite well in my classes, but as a very inexperienced and naive 18 year-old girl, I sadly got involved in a horribly destructive relationship that ultimately led to my having to withdraw from the university as a senior. In the end, I came back home and lived with my parents, eventually graduating from UT Dallas.
My point in telling my story is this: Don't buy a house based on what your kids will or will not achieve, what colleges they will get into, what careers they may have. Buy a house you can afford, where you and your partner can see yourselves living forever just in case that opportunity to move on to bigger-and-better things never happens to arise. Kids are going to be who they are going to be. They could go to Highland Park High School and never get into the college of their dreams; they could go to an economically disadvantaged school with abysmal ratings and get into every place they apply; they could go to a state university and thrive; they could go to a prestigious college and be miserable. You can't predict or control your child's fate by purchasing a home in a particular area. It is my opinion that people correlate these two things too strongly and make foolish financial decisions as a result. Buy a place that is the best fit for you and your partner. Your kids will be happier if YOU are happy and financially stable; in the end, their lives are their own, and they will follow paths that you can neither control nor predict.
I know this is a really old thread, so I am just leaving this comment for my own therapeutic reasons, sending my two cents out into the ether. My husband and I are looking to buy a house in Dallas, so I've been checking out opinions about various neighborhoods in online forums. I have read a number of posts by TurtleCreek80, and I felt compelled to comment on this one.
I've read so many comments about the importance of considering your children's education and future when buying a house, and my husband and I, like most people, are thinking about those factors as we search for a home and prepare for what will most likely be the largest financial investment of our lives. However, my own educational experience and background highlight what I feel is a very important lesson to all potential home buyers out there.
I grew up in Garland where the school districts are less than stellar, and went to South Garland High School, which is very poorly regarded not only in the DFW area but in Garland itself. I certainly had none of the academic advantages that TurtleCreek80 benefited from in HPISD. Nevertheless, I have always been academically inclined and got the best education that I could where I was.
I noticed on another thread that TC80 specifically mentioned applying to Davidson and Vanderbilt, two schools to which I also applied. I wonder, TC80, if the "Top Ten Liberal Arts college" at which you were waitlisted and never accepted was, in fact, Davidson. If so, I find it interesting that I, a supposedly disadvantaged Garland kid, was in fact accepted to Davidson with a scholarship. It was a merit scholarship, not financially based. I was also accepted to Vandy, and to Texas A&M, where I applied as a back-up. I got a scholarship to A&M as well.
Lest you think this story is intended to boast about my academic achievements, let me move on to the second half of the tale. I ended up choosing Vandy over Davidson and A&M, a decision which was ultimately unfortunate in my particular case. I did quite well in my classes, but as a very inexperienced and naive 18 year-old girl, I sadly got involved in a horribly destructive relationship that ultimately led to my having to withdraw from the university as a senior. In the end, I came back home and lived with my parents, eventually graduating from UT Dallas.
My point in telling my story is this: Don't buy a house based on what your kids will or will not achieve, what colleges they will get into, what careers they may have. Buy a house you can afford, where you and your partner can see yourselves living forever just in case that opportunity to move on to bigger-and-better things never happens to arise. Kids are going to be who they are going to be. They could go to Highland Park High School and never get into the college of their dreams; they could go to an economically disadvantaged school with abysmal ratings and get into every place they apply; they could go to a state university and thrive; they could go to a prestigious college and be miserable. You can't predict or control your child's fate by purchasing a home in a particular area. It is my opinion that people correlate these two things too strongly and make foolish financial decisions as a result. Buy a place that is the best fit for you and your partner. Your kids will be happier if YOU are happy and financially stable; in the end, their lives are their own, and they will follow paths that you can neither control nor predict.
I get the tone of your argument. But for the kids in the middle third of the class- a better school makes all the difference.
All things being even, I'm sure a kid right in the middle of his class would have an easier time at Plano, Southlake or HPH rather than at Skyline. Even if the intangibles like it being a nicer building, can't be measured.
That said- A kid at a school where EVERYONE is expected to do well is more likely to buck up than a kid where some fail, some get by, some excel.
You don't need to get into the college of your dreams. You do need to get into the best school you can. A baccalaureate is the new high school diploma. It actually counts now.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
