A bunch of questions about Dix Hills... (Islip, Babylon: sales, insurance)

[nbres]

If you want to check the school stats go to the New York State Report Card on Half Hollow Hills. Overall it is supposed to be a great district, but be wary. Most of the so called "great" districts merely pass kids along from one grade to the next and then fluff the Regents numbers.

[wanna stay on north shore]

I grew up there. It may share the huntington station post office, but rest assured, that is a whole other world from Da' hills.

The bad points?
Many residents are arrogant and ostentatious, so I consider that group 'charater flaw' to be the neighborhood's primary deficit. (you REALLY don't want to talk to many of them)

The good points?
homes are huge, and overall, everyone takes pride in keeping their yards immaculate.
the schools are very high quality. the kids, however, are as arrogant as their parents... so another drawback.

Central dix hills (the vanderbilt pkwy area, where I grew up) is extremely safe. Kids can roam around reasonably free (relative to today's standards) without much worry.

Everyone is from a professional family with a hard work ethic.

Oh, I should also mention that the schools were at the same standard of education as a private school.... was good enough for me to get a head start in undergrad, and do well enough to get a professional degree...... they have 'gifted' programs, many accelerated classes, and a lot of after school independent study / tutorial classes....
hope this helps....

[GCGuy]

Originally Posted by tiff940

Okay...Dix Hills is a very prestigious area with overly expensive houses. Many doctors, lawyers, and other well off people live there. This area is about 98% white. Typical Price: $800,000

If you are speaking about being close to straight path that may be Wheatley Heights...this is a buffer neighborhood between Dix Hills and Wyandanch. The kids from Whealtey Heights go to the Dix Hills school district which provides an advantage of being able to buy a house in the least expensive area and send their kids to the upper class- high rated schools. The only downfall is that the neighborhood is so close to Wynananch that it is not highly looked upon (even though its not a bad area). The houses look exactly the same as in Dix Hills but are $400,000 cheaper. This is primarily black area. Typical Price: $400,000

Wyandanch is what you would consider a "ghetto". Its run down and the school is no good. This is a 98% black area. Typical Price: $250-300,000.


Its sad but with these three areas (they are so close to each other) you see the racial and socioeconomic inequality in this country. Is it a coincidence that the black school is run down and failing and the white one 2 miles away is award winning? I don't think so.

What's sad is that is seems the "black" areas don't seem to care about schools and keeping their homes up.

And Dix Hills is not even close to 98% white.

[GCGuy]

Originally Posted by birdrgal

I didn't know about the current Half Hollow Hills demographics. Some might disagree but IMO I don't separate Caucasian and Asian when thinking about school district makeup, so that in my mind the district would be 84% "okay" (meaning the way I think most people'd view it).

Guessing that the remaining 16% are drawn from the parts of the district including Wheatley Heights, Wyandanch and north Deer Park? I knew Wheatley Heights was in HHH but didn't know it also includes part of North DP and parts of Wyandanch (assuming not all of it?).

Even in Dix Hills "proper" there are sections that are considered more or less desirable. From what I hear, the area between the Expressway and Northern State Parkway contains the most desirable sections. I think the Caledonia area just south of NSP is very nice but it's really different in feel from some other areas of Dix Hills. All a matter of opinion

It's hard to generalize about population/neighborhoods in Dix Hills because the various parts of it can be so different in "ambiance".

I'm not too familiar with the Ryder Ave area but I think that is a Strathmore development maybe? There was a tragedy on Ryder very recently where a little girl died in a house fire.

Do you know any Asians?

[birdrgal]

Originally Posted by GCGuy

Do you know any Asians?

I'm not sure I understand your question.

If you mean, do I know any Asians who live in Dix Hills, no I don't. I was just going by the stats that the other poster quoted.

Do I know any Asians personally? Well yes of course I do (I don't live in a bubble!).

The reason I combine "white" and "Asian" when thinking about school districts is because of the way many people view district demographics -- meaning that right or wrong, they think the higher the percentage of black and/or Hispanic students, the less desirable to them the district is.

I've never heard anyone complain that there were "too many Asians" in a school district (although I HAVE heard some complain that the Asian students, with their very high work ethic and achievement, were "ruining the curve" for the less-motivated white students!).

[nbres]

Ever been in Herricks High School?

Got Asians.

[wanna stay on north shore]

hi again

of course there are asian families in dix hills.... about 1/2 of my friends growing up were either indian or japanese.... today, I know all these ethnic groups are finally being decently represented in dix hills.... including some families from the middle east.

BUT, it's not a fantastically diverse community.... it's a bit better than 20 years ago, but it's still VERY white, and VERY catholic/jewish.... so my poor friends were viewed as 'different'.... at least a couple decades ago, if kids didn't fit the white catholic/jewish mould, they were ridiculed quite a bit at school.... hopefully, things have changed with the times....

[DixHillsRes]

I have lived in Dix Hills my entire life, so I feel I'm pretty qualified to answer this question thoroughly. And yes, I live in "Dix Hills proper." I love Dix Hills. Though some people can be quite snooty at times, in reality there is much diversity and acceptance throughout. On my block, there are 17 houses. The families within have a wide array of religious, ethnic, and racial backgrounds (Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, White, Black, Middle Eastern, South Asian, East Asian, Central American, European, first generation immigrants, etc). And that's just one block.

You children will receive not only an excellent education in the schools, but also in life. I grew up experiencing the cultures of all my friends, whether it be learning about a friend's religion I had never encountered ( such as Parsi) and learning the traditional Jewish prayers at bar and bat mitzvahs, or learning how to properly conduct oneself in very formal situations as well as just hanging out and being a normal kid. I went off to college more accepting and knowledgeable than any of my roommates, which I attribute to my town and its people. I went to Paumanok and had the current principal as a 4th grade teacher. She is committed to excellence and one of the most sincere, wonderful people I know. I then attended Candlewood and Hills West, though West Hollow and Hills East are also excellent. The schools generally compete with each other to have the highest scores on every standardized test and beat each other at every sport, so it's difficuly to decipher which is really best. Each class brings a different talent to the scene.

To be honest, you'd be doing yourself a disservice by not sending your children to the Half Hollow Hills school district. I should know, as I am now entering my senior year of college. My preparation within the classroom and the dedication of teachers to their students is what has placed many from my High School graduation class into the top schools in the country. From my graduating class alone, roughly 20 of us are currently attending Ivy League schools, and many others are in the other top colleges around the country. The first thing I noticed upon arriving was how different my education was to my peers. The study skills and work ethic taught in many other places doesn't even begin to compare. I grew up in a household where education was a top priority, so Dix Hills was clearly an obvious choice for my parents, as I'm sure it will be to you if you have similar views on your children's futures. I can't even begin to number the other students I graduated with who are currently taking LSATs, MCATs, looking into starting their own businesses or have already done so, or are following their passions and talents, and are already preparing a bright future for themselves. Surrounding your own children with others as such can only further enhance them.

And believe it or not, neighbors are really neighbors out there. In fact, our neighbors get together regularly for dinners or parties. This past weekend we had everyone over for a bbq. When one neighbor was sent to the hospital a year ago, the entire block showed up to visit and help out with her household. They did the same for my own family when a tragedy occurred to us this year. I know my friends from other streets around town have the same kinds of relationships, whether its playing together as children, lending a cup or sugar, watching each others' pets, and what have you. It really is a wonderful town and I hope to have as much luck when I myself am raising a family and looking for a good place to live.

I hope that helps!

[KM04]

Thanks for your responses! They definitely aided in my decision to make an offer on the house-- which was accepted! We scheduled an inspection and hopefully all goes well.

[wanna stay on north shore]

Originally Posted by KM04

Thanks for your responses! They definitely aided in my decision to make an offer on the house-- which was accepted! We scheduled an inspection and hopefully all goes well.

Congrats! and good luck with the inspection....