Moving from Upstate NY (Lower Adirondacks) to Dayton Ohio area (great, information)

[RDriesenUD]

Your best bet is to contact the local Rec centers, WPAFB, the local school district where you move, and the colleges. I know Wright State used to do a cool "camp" in the evenings that my friends and I would go to when we were kids. They had tons of games, sports, etc.... setup. I'm pretty sure it was at the Nutter Center.

Kettering Recreation Complex | PlayKettering

Summer Camps! | PlayKettering

http://www.ketteringoh.org/wp-conten...ummerCamps.pdf

National Museum of the USAF

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base - Home

https://www.boonshoftmuseum.org

https://www.boonshoftmuseum.org/expe...scovery-camps/

https://www.udayton.edu

https://www.udayton.edu/studev/healt...camp/index.php

https://www.wright.edu

https://www.wright.edu/multicultural...sey-grades-7-9

https://www.wright.edu/multicultural...kids-on-campus

[Marsh27]

I appreciate all the information on this thread! My husband will be going to Ohio next week to see if he wants the position. If he says yes, we will be traveling at the end of April together to check out neighborhoods and cities. On paper Oakwood is a big winner for me as far as school district. I really love the idea that my boys would be able to go to the same school while transitioning (my eldest will be entering 6th and my younger 3rd). My husband's perspective employer recommended we look at Beavercreek. There is an airforce base close so I am thinking that "new" kids are something typical for the school district. It is definitely an option, the school districts seem to compare nicely with Oakwood and a huge plus for my family is the hockey rink and program in the high school. Hockey is a large part of my sons lives, in fact they are both more sad to leave their "hockey families" behind than any of their school friends.

While I am down in April, I'd like to try and seek out a pediatrician and dentist for my boys as well. Any suggestions are more than welcome.

[dxdtdemon]

As far as dentists go, will you have dental insurance? It seems like each dentist in this area is associated with a different health plan, so depending on which one you have, you may not have a lot of choice unless you are willing to pay out of pocket. That being said, I haven't heard of any bad dentists in the area, and for some reason, dental office architecture is a thing. By that, I mean that there is a dental office that was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, a dental office in a log cabin, and others I'm forgetting. You're right about the fact that Beavercreek has a whole lot of "new" kids every year. Of the 29 kids in my kindergarten class, only five of us graduated from Beavercreek High school, and I think that's fairly typical throughout the district. When I went to college, it was an extreme culture shock that people had many best friends from when they were little that they still socialized with. Oakwood has a lot less migration, and the people I know who went there were really cliquish, but that was just a small sample.

[wrightflyer]

I'd recommend Dr. Ronald L. Roddy in Beavercreek for dental. It may be hard to get in and I'm not even sure if they are taking new patients at the moment. I'm usually having to book at least 6-7 months in advance. But the care and service are definitely worth it. Don't have a pediatrician to recommend. I know of the log cabin dentist office of which dxdtdemon speaks. The one on Dayton-Xenia near Kroger?

Beavercreek will have many, many more transplants and people moving in (and out) than Oakwood. Schools would be on par with Centerville in terms of size and quality. Oakwood is hard to compare to Beavercreek due to the large size difference. That being said, many of the schools are zoned to specific neighborhoods or sections of Beavercreek. So you have a set area, without moving from a K-2 to 3-4 to 5 to 6-8 then 9-12 buildings. It is Preschool, K-5, 6-8, 9 in the former Ferguson middle school building connected to the high school (so you can still take advanced courses) and then 10-12 in the high school building.

I remember always having friends move in and out, and many of my "life-long" friends I have I didn't meet until they moved in during high school. I probably only have 2-3 people from elementary or middle that I keep in touch with because of the district's size and transient student body. The district has a wide offering of programs, including a well respected music program and many AP courses. Not sure now, but it has had a large output of National Merit Finalists and Scholars as recently as 3-5 years ago. So the transient body doesn't really effect state standings in terms of quality. If anything, the large engineering population at the base contributes to student achievement.

Whether Oakwood or Beavercreek, you cannot go wrong. It really depends if you want to have an older home (1910's-1940's) or something post-WWII up to today (i.e. new builds).

[gentlearts]

I'm a bit late to the thread, but have you considered Centerville? My grandkids went through the Centerville school system, and it was really excellent. Lots of AP classes, if your kids need them. Not only are the schools great, but there seems to be a park or two in every neighborhood, and sports programs for the kids of every kind. I do not remember my grandkids playing hockey, but I think they have an active program.

[wrightflyer]

Originally Posted by gentlearts

I'm a bit late to the thread, but have you considered Centerville? My grandkids went through the Centerville school system, and it was really excellent. Lots of AP classes, if your kids need them. Not only are the schools great, but there seems to be a park or two in every neighborhood, and sports programs for the kids of every kind. I do not remember my grandkids playing hockey, but I think they have an active program.

Most of the D-I schools have active programs. Not sure of now, but Centerville usually practiced out of Metro South Ice and Beavercreek and Kettering shared the Kettering Rec Ice just west of The Greene (so right outside the SW corner of Beavercreek.

[SWOH]

Originally Posted by Marsh27

I appreciate all the information on this thread! My husband will be going to Ohio next week to see if he wants the position. If he says yes, we will be traveling at the end of April together to check out neighborhoods and cities. On paper Oakwood is a big winner for me as far as school district. I really love the idea that my boys would be able to go to the same school while transitioning (my eldest will be entering 6th and my younger 3rd). My husband's perspective employer recommended we look at Beavercreek. There is an airforce base close so I am thinking that "new" kids are something typical for the school district. It is definitely an option, the school districts seem to compare nicely with Oakwood and a huge plus for my family is the hockey rink and program in the high school. Hockey is a large part of my sons lives, in fact they are both more sad to leave their "hockey families" behind than any of their school friends.

While I am down in April, I'd like to try and seek out a pediatrician and dentist for my boys as well. Any suggestions are more than welcome.

Awesome!

Glad he will have a chance to visit the area and get a feel for it.

Again, I would take a very careful and thorough look around Oakwood, Troy, and Kettering. And if Beavercreek works out, then look carefully there too. I will say that Beavercreek does not meet many of the criteria listed in your OP though, only Oakwood and Troy (and really, just Troy) meet them well. But if Beavercreek works, then that is great!


Also, please note the high number of "relocating to Oakwood" threads here. There are tons of young families there! In that respect I will vehemently disagree with the above posters that say Oakwood is cliquish, given the relocation patterns there I can say with certainty that families move in and out just as frequently there as they do in Beavercreek or most of the other communities around the city.


Either way, again I implore you to not skip Troy. I have a feeling it'll be a better match that you could imagine! Good luck and Happy St. Pat's Day.


Also, the dentist I go to is absolutely stellar but she's in West Chester. If you're interested, PM me and I'll send you her info.

[Marsh27]

Originally Posted by SWOH

Again, I would take a very careful and thorough look around Oakwood, Troy, and Kettering. And if Beavercreek works out, then look carefully there too. I will say that Beavercreek does not meet many of the criteria listed in your OP though, only Oakwood and Troy (and really, just Troy) meet them well. But if Beavercreek works, then that is great!

Either way, again I implore you to not skip Troy. I have a feeling it'll be a better match that you could imagine! Good luck and Happy St. Pat's Day.

Thank you, for the information! Yes, Oakwood seems perfect on paper. It is missing the hockey component. At first I thought being a short drive away from the rink would be okay with the rest of the family, but after further discussing it with them they'd prefer to be closer to the rink and the assurance that there is a hockey program in the high school. My husband's future employer's family resides in Beavercreek, that is one of the reasons we have given it a close look. I will put more research into Troy as well.

I do have a question, a few times in the thread I have noticed people referencing D-1 schools. Is that how Ohio classifies schools in terms of size for their athletic programs? For example here in NY the state is broken into sections, then each section is broken into subcategories based on the size (enrollment) of the student body. We live in Section II and are a 'B' school, (the scale being A-D from largest to smallest).

As far as the schools are concerned do you have any information on class sizes? My eldest does have a 504 plan and does tend to do better with a smaller class size.

Again thank you for all your help. It is pretty wild how close our big transition is getting. It is as much a huge change for me as my children. We happen to live in the city I was raised and went to school in, a quick bike to grandparents and uncles...so, I am trying to make this transition as gentle as possible.
~Nicole

[RDriesenUD]

Yes, we go by divisions. Division 1 is the biggest. There aren't a lot of small public schools around here (outside of Oakwood). You may want to look at a private school for your son, if he does best in smaller classes, or look at an area (mostly north of Dayton) that has smaller public schools. Most schools around here are really good with any kid who has a need though. Kettering, where I am from, is great, IMO. I think your best bet is Kettering/Beavercreek near the Rec Center or the Troy/Tipp City area.

Also, what do you consider as far? Oakwood isn't that far from the ice rink and you are going to be traveling a little bit to go to tournaments, etc.... anyway.

[SWOH]

Originally Posted by Marsh27

As far as the schools are concerned do you have any information on class sizes? My eldest does have a 504 plan and does tend to do better with a smaller class size.

Again thank you for all your help. It is pretty wild how close our big transition is getting. It is as much a huge change for me as my children. We happen to live in the city I was raised and went to school in, a quick bike to grandparents and uncles...so, I am trying to make this transition as gentle as possible.
~Nicole

Sure! Google State of Ohio District Report Cards for the best info there, they will do a breakdown of the number of students per class.

If you're talking about class as in grade, Centerville is largest at around 700-800 students, Beavercreek & Kettering are second at around 500 - 600, Troy is a bit smaller at 400 - 500, and Oakwood and Tipp City are around the same at 200 - 300, being the smallest.