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My daughter will be a Sophomore at Lawrence High School ( District 15, Nassau, Long Island) this Fall. I have long had major concerns over safety and the quality of education in Lawrence, but I'm at the point where I have to make a decision now. We live on the border of District 14 ( Hewlett - Woodmere ) and District 15 ( Lawrence). The border runs precisely through the edge of my backyard. My neighbor on the other side of the bushes is in District 14 and I'm in District 15
I have heard of people simply buying one square foot of their neighbor's property, so they could qualify for the neighboring school district. I have also heard of people paying tuition or the difference in taxes between the two districts. Does anyone know whether that is doable to get into Hewlett-Woodmere Schools ? Any and all suggestions would be welcome.
Alternatively, we are considering Lawrence-Woodmere Academy, a private school in the area. I know it has had a reputation as a place where spoiled rich kids go to do a lot of drugs. Is that description still accurate? I want a school with strong academics and strong athletics ( my daughter plays volleyball), without the drugs ( we have more than enough of that at Lawrence).
I'm eager to hear opinions on both of my questions. Please let me know.
Thank you
My daughter will be a Sophomore at Lawrence High School ( District 15, Nassau, Long Island) this Fall. I have long had major concerns over safety and the quality of education in Lawrence, but I'm at the point where I have to make a decision now. We live on the border of District 14 ( Hewlett - Woodmere ) and District 15 ( Lawrence). The border runs precisely through the edge of my backyard. My neighbor on the other side of the bushes is in District 14 and I'm in District 15
I have heard of people simply buying one square foot of their neighbor's property, so they could qualify for the neighboring school district. I have also heard of people paying tuition or the difference in taxes between the two districts. Does anyone know whether that is doable to get into Hewlett-Woodmere Schools ? Any and all suggestions would be welcome.
Alternatively, we are considering Lawrence-Woodmere Academy, a private school in the area. I know it has had a reputation as a place where spoiled rich kids go to do a lot of drugs. Is that description still accurate? I want a school with strong academics and strong athletics ( my daughter plays volleyball), without the drugs ( we have more than enough of that at Lawrence).
I'm eager to hear opinions on both of my questions. Please let me know.
Thank you
I can't give you input with respect to each district's qualities or shortcomings. Most schools -- public or private -- have students with drugs.
Your idea of buying a small portion of your neighbor's property to extend your home into the other district will be time consuming. School will have started long before that property is legally yours; you'll still have to contend with both school districts as well.
Hewlett-Woodmere is VERY strict re: evidence for living in their district. My cousin has been a teacher there for 20 years, and the admin and community is heartily sick of people from outside the district sneaking in. My former neighbor bought a house there but hadn't closed when school started in September. They refused to let her enroll her daughter until she had closed and was able to prove they were living in the house. I think someone even came to the house to check it out. There's no way they're going to be ok with "a foot of your back yard" being in the district.
LWA has a great reputation. Small classes and a solid teaching staff. I know someone that gave up a public school teaching position to work there (for less money!) and he's never looked back. LOVES it and now his daughter goes there too.
The buying one square foot of property thing won't work. Owning property in a school district does not grant you the right to send your kids to their schools. You must reside in the SD. Ownership is irrelevant. Its domicile. The family who rents an apartment - are their kids banned from attending the local schools because they don't own property? No. Conversely, if you own a house in a SD, but live outside the district, can your kids attend schools in that district? No.
Thank you all for your feedback.
I think our options are now down to either renting an apartment/room in Hewlett-Woodmere SD for the next school year or going to LWA this year.
My daughter did a tour of the school last week - quite a difference from a big public school!
Aesthetics aside, we are worried about the following:
1. The limited availability of AP courses (the high school is 135 kids in total, and as such, there are not enough students to warrant offering the same amount of AP classes as a large public school).
2. Whether the teachers can truly push the students ( after all, the parents pay tuition, so the teachers are more likely to tell us what we want to hear and not what we need to hear).
3. The lower athletics level at LWA is also a concern.
You are definitely overthinking Number 2. In a public school, all the teachers have tenure. Do you think that creates incentive to push the students?
But overall, life is often a matter of choosing which sacrifices you are going to make.
As to the renting of a "room", keep in mind that districts can and do utilize investigators that will conduct old school surveillance which can easily discern that you and the kid are living somewhere other than the "room" you are renting. So if the choice is to move to a desirable district, than do just that.
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