plainedge or massapequa schools? (Hempstead, Oyster Bay: renting, how much, houses)

[nancypatricia812]

Hi.... moving to area and have read mixed reviews. The consensus seems to be- Massapequa.... good district but has gotten worse and overcrowded over past couple of years. Plainedge.... smaller district and has gotten better over past couple of years. both have average marks according to schooldigger.com.
ANyway, looking for opinions from local residents who have experienced either of these recently. thanks in advance!

[Teacher2Be]

Do you have children yet? If so, are they into sports, are they special needs, etc?

They are both good districts, you are correct in that Plainedge is a smaller district, which can be great! The HS is not so overcrowded, but there's not a whole lot nearby if a senior wants to leave campus for lunch (except for that Chicken place maybe on Hicksville Rd).

If you are buying/renting in the area, MAKE SURE to find out that the place you are looking at is in Plainedge schools if you choose them. There are houses right across the street on Hicksville Rd from Wyngate (where Plainedge HS is) that are NOT in Plainedge schools, but rather Levittown schools. Very strange/tricky area to live in I know people who are in Seaford, are Plainedge schools buy are Town of Oyster Bay!!

[qatcat]

Both are good districts. Massapequa is about 3x's larger that Plainedge. Plainedge district is a nice district to live in, and yes you have to be careful...it doesn't take much until you're in Farmingdale, Levittown or Seaford.


The area around Plainedge has always been nice

N or Jerusalem, East of Hicksville, West of Broadway and S of SS Pkwy and within walking distance of the HS.

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by Teacher2Be

If you are buying/renting in the area, MAKE SURE to find out that the place you are looking at is in Plainedge schools if you choose them. There are houses right across the street on Hicksville Rd from Wyngate (where Plainedge HS is) that are NOT in Plainedge schools, but rather Levittown schools. Very strange/tricky area to live in :)

The Plainedge Union Free School District includes most, but not all, of the Hamlet of Plainedge, and most of the Hamlet of North Massapequa and a small part of the Hamlet of Massapequa. (The part of the Hamlet of Plainedge that is not in the Plainedge Union Free School District is in the Farmingdale Union Free School District.)

Originally Posted by Teacher2Be

I know people who are in Seaford, are Plainedge schools buy are Town of Oyster Bay!!

These people are not in the Hamlet of Seaford, which is completely in the Town of Hempstead; they are in the part of the Hamlet of Plainedge that has a "Seaford, NY 11783" mailing address.

[Walter Greenspan]

The Plainedge Union Free School District includes most, but not all, of the Hamlet of Plainedge ...

For those who may not be familiar with Plainedge:

Plainedge is a hamlet (an unincorporated area) in the southeast part of the Town of Oyster Bay, in the southeast part of Nassau County, along the Oyster Bay/Hempstead town line.

Beginning on its northern border and proceeding clockwise, the Hamlet of Plainedge in the Town of Oyster Bay is bordered on the north by the Hamlet of Bethpage; on the east by the Hamlet of South Farmingdale; on the south by the Hamlet of North Massapequa; and, on the west by the Hamlet of Levittown in the Town of Hempstead (the Oyster Bay/Hempstead town line).





Plainedge is one of those many villages and hamlets on Long Island where none of the places in the community have the hamlet name as part of their mailing address: places in the Hamlet of Plainedge have a "Massapequa, NY 11758", "Levittown, NY 11756", "Bethpage, NY 11714", "Seaford, NY 11783" and "Farmingdale, NY 11735" mailing address.


For a good set of town-by-town maps showing all the villages and hamlets in each of LI's 13 towns (3 in Nassau County and 10 in Suffolk County):

http://www.city-data.com/forum/long-...-resource.html

[LilTownBlues]

Originally Posted by Teacher2Be

Do you have children yet? If so, are they into sports, are they special needs, etc?

They are both good districts, you are correct in that Plainedge is a smaller district, which can be great!

As Teacher2BE indicates there are a number of factors to consider beyond test scores. If you have kids, how old? Are there kids, living on the block/neighborhood that you are considering moving to, that could provide a source of friends for your kids? What are their hobbies/interests? Are there parks, recreation facilities or sports leagues nearby that will support their interests/hobbies? IMO considerations such as these may be as important a factor as test scores, particularly when comparing these 2 districts.

As far as these 2 districts go -
Does the fact that Plainedge is smaller mean more personal attention for the kids? Does the fact that Massapequa being bigger mean more resources and more available courses of study? Also check the NY State Education Department website for more statistics on these 2 districts. You can also attempt to contact the districts directly and ask them any questions that you may have. Personally, between these 2 districts I'd say you can't go wrong either way.

I'd also suggest trying to spend some time in the area, talk to folks, stop in some of the local stores. Get as good a feel for the area as you can, I think that will help you develop a comfort level as to what is best for you and your family.

Finally, be cautious of those who give warnings of how much "worse" everything is. Things change over time, that is a certainty. However, different is not always "worse", "better" is not always the past. Facts and your opinion are what counts in the end.

[sean sean sean sean]

Originally Posted by qatcat

Both are good districts. Massapequa is about 3x's larger that Plainedge. Plainedge district is a nice district to live in, and yes you have to be careful...it doesn't take much until you're in Farmingdale, Levittown or Seaford.

As LilTownBlues said, there are many factors to consider other than test scores.....but for the record MacArthur HS (Levittown school in that area) does better than Plainedge, Massapequa, Seaford or Farmingdale year in year out...might be better off on the other side of 107!

What I know of Plainedge it's a good district, though. I didn't grow up far away and knew a bunch of people from there who were very down to earth decent folks. If I was personally picking between the two I'd choose Plainedge without a doubt even though Massapequa is the "better" district on paper.

[Teacher2Be]

Ahhh "Walter"... We've met before, I see your name has changed. Same drivel that no one gives a hoot about.

[sean sean sean sean]

Originally Posted by Teacher2Be

Ahhh "Walter"... We've met before, I see your name has changed. Same drivel that no one gives a hoot about.

Hopefully you're not becoming a social studies teacher....

[Teacher2Be]

Originally Posted by sean sean sean sean

Hopefully you're not becoming a social studies teacher....

"Walter" likes to post about hamlets, towns, etc. For day to day living, this means nothing to most people. They go by the zip code or maybe the town they live in, such as stating that they live in Farmingdale, but the Town of Babylon part of Farmingdale. They don't care, nor do the vast majority of people, about whether they reside in a hamlet or what have you. I thought by leaving another forum I was away from him, but alas, he travels as well