Help Please Is Willmington That Horrible? (Wilmington, Dover: how much, school district, colleges)

[bizymudda]

Originally Posted by rcovph

We are thinkning of moving to the Willmington area. My husband it going to be working about 30 min outside of Phila. and we thought this would be a nice alternative for us to look for a house, BUT after reading some of these posts to be honest I have totally been scared away, High crime, pollution, cancer risk, real bad areas, bad schools... AAHHH.. Can ANYONE out there clarify this? Is this really what it's like? Should we just concentrate on PA and forget DE? We are looking for a nice area with a quaint downtown area and good schools for our childrenand SAFE above all.Our price range is 700k to 900k. Please someone help.

If you got a budget that allows you to buy a home for 900k you got nothing to worry about. Rent for awhile, look around for yourself, send the kids to private school and relax-you are blessed!

[maryanncoburn]

DON'T DO IT - Relocated to this hell for a job promotion - I should have stayed put!

Delaware is polution hell (thanks DuPont) - across the river from a nuclear reactor (in NJ) - and the schools are the worst in the nation. The Christiana / Colonial school district is bankrupt and the teacher try - but - not up to par (sorry).

[Charley]

To momoftwinBOYS,

I had hoped that you would have responded to my question about your universal slam of schools in Delaware. Quite possibly you did not see the question, so I am posing it again here for your convenience.

You originally stated: If you want a public school education for your children - DON'T move to Delaware - YES taxes are cheaper - but the entire education system needs some serious re-vamping.

My question was: Is that a measure of the entire state, or specific counties, or specific school districts within the counties, or specific schools within certain districts?

Your feedback would be most appreciated to help me determine if you are referring to a statewide problem, a countywide problem, a specific district problem or a school problem.

Thanks.
Charley

[Charley]

Regarding the statement that Delaware schools are the "worst in the nation", I referred to Morgan Quitno’s annual reference book, Education State Rankings, 2006-2007, which ranks schools based on 21 factors.

Delaware ranks number 28 out of 50 states, so right in the middle. Certainly not great, but not the worst in the nation.

Here are the 21 factors:

• Public Elementary and Secondary School Revenue per $1,000 Personal Income
• Percent of Public Elementary and Secondary School Current Expenditures used for Instruction
• Percent of Population Graduated from High School
• Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate for Public High Schools
• Percent of Public School Fourth Graders Proficient or Better in Reading
• Percent of Public School Eighth Graders Proficient or Better in Reading
• Percent of Public School Fourth Graders Proficient or Better in Writing
• Percent of Public School Eighth Graders Proficient or Better in Writing
• Percent of Public School Fourth Graders Proficient or Better in Mathematics
• Percent of Public School Eighth Graders Proficient or Better in Mathematics
• Average Teacher Salary as a Percent of Average Annual Pay of All Workers
• Average Daily Attendance as a Percent of Fall Enrollment in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools
• Percent of School-Age Population in Public Schools
• High School Drop Out Rate
• Special Education Pupil-Teacher Ratio
• Percent of Public Elementary and Secondary School Staff Who are School District Administrators
• Average Class Size in Public Elementary Schools
• Average Class Size in Public Secondary Schools
• Median Pupil-Teacher Ratio in Public Primary Schools
• Median Pupil-Teacher Ratio in Public Middle Schools
• Median Pupil-Teacher Ratio in Public High Schools
  

Charley

P.S. Y'all knew I'd find some statistics, didn't you?

[maryanncoburn]

Please refer to this link and see where DE schools fall

[SIZE=2]America's Top Public High Schools | Newsweek Best High Schools | Newsweek.com

[/SIZE]

[Charley]

The link you provided shows an article listing the top 1351 high schools, and does not include any other level of education. In addition, only the top 100 show. Clicking on the page to resort or search that list does not provide additional results.

Interestingly enough, of the top 100 schools, only 22 states are represented in the top 100 schools. Delaware is one of those 22 states.

Is this listing the basis for your opinion that Delaware has the worst schools in the nation? Or is it a larger issue? Is it just that Delaware is no good (for you, which is an opinion that you are certainly entitled to have) and the schools are just a small part of it?

Thanks.
Charley

[rockky]

Charley, I'm sure saying 'worst in the nation' is the poster's personal view, and you won't find statistical info in exact support. The poster may have a personal basis for the comment.

As you said, Delaware is #28 out of 50. However, they are #8 in per pupil spending at somewhere around $9,300.00 per student per year.

Now I have to ask myself two questions. I would think that with that sort of spending, the state would have better results. Why are they #28?

Delaware is a small state. I would think that with the proper system they could educate their young people more easily and better than a larger state with greater population, geography, and diversity. Why are they #28?

Oh, wait! I have one (OK...two) more questions. If the taxes are so low, where do they get the money to fund such a high per pupil outlay? What exactly is each student getting from that amount of money? Hummmm?

I wish I could find the ratio of public to private/charter school enrollment in DE. I do know that many, many people refuse to send their kids to public schools in DE. I just can't give you stats....dern it.

If you read the on line News Journal out of Wilmington, there is often a great deal of discussion about the public schools. It was a real eye opener for me.

[maryCh]

You go Charley! Don't know what is behind momoftwinBOYS' beef, as I have only seen irregular postings from her.

As most know from my other posts, our family is (are) a relative newbie(s) to central DE. I researched most states east of the Mississippi for the right fit for us. Citi-data was a major source of information, as I lurked on other state pages off and on over the last year or so. Other major sources of info were parent forums for kids with special needs (because of our autistic son). Throw in the pot my "middle aged" down syndrome brother, I researched from a lot of unique angles.

I am by no means an expert on economy, or education, or whatever. But for what we were looking for, for hubby and me, our kids, my brother, and my folks down the line, Delaware seems to have something good to offer in the areas important to us. The biggest negative we have found so far is salary for hubby, but that seems to be an issue nation-wide.

momoftwinBOYS - I saw the Newsweek article, and I agree with Charley... it only hit on the top 100. With there being about 1 million school districts in the U.S., I personally took the article with a grain of salt. Obviously, for many reasons, MOST families are not in a position to have their kids attend a "top 100" school. Just like not everyone CAN or WANTS TO work for a Fortune 100 or 500 employer. Does that make all other schools below the "top 100" line bad schools? Of course not.

Back to the original question... is Wilmington all that horrible? We personally are not interested in living in or near a city the size of Wilmington. Hubby and I both know people past and present that lived/live in the Wilmington/Newark area. I have found through my conversations with them and "speaking" online to folks that Wilmington is the kind of city you either love or hate. No better or worse than most cities of its size. One thing, it seems, that is viewed as a problem with Wilmington is its proximity to Philly. You can find similar set ups all across the U.S.

The bottom line, in my most humble opinion, is that you will find good and bad everywhere... from the biggest, most "worldly" city (i.e. NY, LA, etc) to the tiniest country town (which we lean towards for living). When in NC, we ended up "surrounded" by registered sex offenders. That was back before the information was accessible online. And we had problems with nuclear power plants in the middle of no-where leaking, and chemicals being discovered in the ground water from the furniture manufacturing related businesses, etc., etc. And we were out in "God's country" as southerner's like to call it.

My advise... gather your info from several sources, become as informed as you can without being obsessive about it, and figure out how to live life! On this forum, elizamary is a shining star (again in my opinion).

And Charley.... keep that research and the stats coming! You are a wealth of resource and information! Can't wait for you and the Mrs. to hit town!

Mary

[maryCh]

Rockky,

I must have been writing my "book" while you were writing yours! I searched and searched for comparisons of public and private schools, and never found anything useful for any state. I think the day will come when that data is available. I as a parent have completed a lot of surveys for colleges in that vein, so the numbers ARE being crunched.

From what I see, the problem with the lack of data comes from the fact that part are public (tons of data on the dept of education sites) and part are private (which can choose to be analyzed etc based on accredidation (sp?), etc.

I think LASH made a comment a few weeks ago about newspapers and the way information can be skewed or sensationalized (see thread about the Del State shooting about 3 or 4 weeks ago). And having NY relatives (hubby & family) and friends that were directly affected by 9/11, my views of newspapers and TV news may be a bit different than other folks.

Yes, news reports are eye openers. They should be... they are supposed to be news. I too read the online version of the News Journal as a DE resource... got a lot of information there too. Another reason we targeted central DE instead of the northern or southern counties. But put the info reported beside the NY Times, or the Washington DC papers, or Chicago, etc. and even "horrible" Wilmington doesn't look like the totally wasted place it can sometimes be viewed as.

I probably need to go to bed... my postings are reflecting my lack of sleep!

Mary

[mikandmari]

If the momoftwinboys is disgruntled over the school system and the pollution, my guess is she didn't do her homework before settling it.

Yep, many people on here will suggest that newbies avoid both the Christina and the Colonial School Districts. Meaning you would also avoid the neighborhoods in these school districts. Pollution and the Salem, NJ Nuclear Plant? Where are you living, in Delaware City or Port Penn? Augustine Beach? (All in Colonial School District.) Not sure where you came from, either... but what were you expecting midway between Washington D.C. and NYC, Hawaii?

If your budget only allows you to live in areas of poor schools and pollution, there are better places in DE to get more bang for your buck. Try Kent County, better schools down there .. others have posted a lot about the Caesar Rodney district. In New Castle County, try the Prices Corner area, houses are affordable & taxes are cheap, and you can choice your kids into any Red Clay School, which includes the affluent areas. It's crowded, but cheaper, better, and less polluted than NJ & many parts of PA.