77079 vs 77024 ? (Houston, Sugar Land, Spring: 2013, how much, townhouses)

[Maybe So]

Originally Posted by fnh

even the eastern 77079 schools were considered iffy until fairly recently.

Just out of curiosity, which schools are you refereeing to? The most
Eastern 77079 school is Rummel Creek Elem. then you have Wilchester Elem. I can tell you Wilchester Elem does not fall in that category. Are you talking RCE?

[fnh]

I actually had Stratford in mind, which had only an acceptable rating at the last TEA assessment. (But a dear friend of mine whose kids are at Frostwood did mention that she got the vibe that RCE was considered Frostwood's poor relation.)

I still think the OP should look at 77055.

[Maybe So]

I would consider Stratford "western" 77079 since Eldridge and west is KISD. In fact there is only one school further west in 77079 that is zoned in SBISD -
Nottingham Elem. I guess I was confused in that respect and since you said "eastern schoolS" ...I will give you middle of 77079 -Spring Forest (however neighborhood families happy there) but I have seen Stratford high ranking on a some lists. Not as high as 77024 Memorial High though.

Also so since you mentioned it - what does poor relation mean? Cheap homes, less educated population, less school resources? Again- just curious.

[nismom]

Looks like I need to look at 77584 or 77479 for school choices + decent homes

[fnh]

Eastern/western... Either way, it is undeniable that Stratford was until recently considered undesirable (still is, by many.)

My friend told me that in the context of a long-time Frostwood staff member (nurse? librarian?) now being shared with RCE, as if RCE can't afford their own.

To the OP, I don't know those zip codes at all. DH refuses to consider any area outside the beltway (works downtown). Frankly, the best public schools in the Houston metro are the selective HISD magnets; following those, the most attractive public schools (to us) in terms of demographics and performance are the far-flung suburban schools in FBISD, KISD, CFISD - if one is willing to commute that far (we are not, personal preference.) Instead we bought a cheaper home closer in Houston and send our kids to an excellent private school, but we also have a second home in a state where the 'crummy' public schools are still more attractive than the 'best' schools here.

[ToyYot]

After the above rant my best advice is discount anything fnh says.

[fnh]

Okay... But why? We've considered buying in the Memorial area ourselves, and West U, and the Heights, and any other 'desirable' area in Houston within the beltway, lol. We can well afford it, we have friends in all of these areas with kids at all of these schools and don't particularly like spending $40k per year for grade school for our kids. But we also see that the academic standards in TX are quite low, and that the 'best' schools are hyped beyond what they are really worth - after all, you are paying a significant premium for homes zoned to them plus the extra taxes. I am serious when I suggest that 77055 represents a better choice for the OP at this point, or HISD, or the far suburbs. Just my two cents laid out in a reasonable fashion, sorry if you thought it was a rant.

Added: I'm clearly the minority viewpoint here, and I've consciously refrained from commenting on many threads regarding schools in the Memorial area since there is no arguing with certain boosters (even though they prove my point!), but I was irresistibly drawn in today when Frostwood was described as a 'diverse' school... My apologies!

[DejaBlue]

Originally Posted by fnh

Frostwood is, what, 75% white? And quite affluent I might add. Show me an area school with a higher percentage in a city with a minority white population. The next represented demographic, Asian, is crammed into nearby apartment/townhomes (e.g. The Pines, see above). I have a hard time believing the Hispanic population is even 10%, maybe it is, but the AA population is certainly negligible.

Point is, the school scores are great but principally reflect a predominantly white, very affluent demographic, and nothing more. Otherwise, why are the SBISD schools north of I-10 undesirable? Heck, even the eastern 77079 schools were considered iffy until fairly recently.

LOL. You're not lying about the crammed into apartments/townhomes. I don't know what school it's zoned (maybe Frostwood since one of the neighborhoods across the street says Frostwood) but I've been down Memorial Drive during school drop off hours and the amount of Asian kids getting off the bus at the Somerset Place townhome/apartments was ridiculous. I could have sworn every kid got off the bus and every last one of them were Asian I was shociked.

I honestly hadn't ever seen so many kids get off at one stop. Ever.

[ToyYot]

Originally Posted by fnh

Eastern/western... Either way, it is undeniable that Stratford was until recently considered undesirable (still is, by many)

This...I mean really, your 'friend' told you this so it must be true.

[demog]

Originally Posted by DejaBlue

LOL. You're not lying about the crammed into apartments/townhomes. I don't know what school it's zoned (maybe Frostwood since one of the neighborhoods across the street says Frostwood) but I've been down Memorial Drive during school drop off hours and the amount of Asian kids getting off the bus at the Somerset Place townhome/apartments was ridiculous. I could have sworn every kid got off the bus and every last one of them were Asian I was shociked.

I honestly hadn't ever seen so many kids get off at one stop. Ever.

Nothing compared to Sugarland.