FACTS About Riverhead SD? (New York, Hempstead: new home, school rankings, college)

[ambralita]

We found our dream home (our 1st) in Baiting Hollow--beautiful nature, property, and low taxes. We have a toddler and are concerned about all the HEARSAY we've heard about the Riverhead SD, esp. the upper levels. Can anyone out there provide some FACTS about this SD? Not just reputation, but actual first-hand knowledge? We are open-minded people but are certainly leery of anything coming close to violence, drugs, etc.

Thank you!

[dman72]

School (District)........................................ ............Standard Ranking (County/Percent Free Lunch)
Wheatley School (East Williston)........................................ .245.0 (N/3%)
Cold Spring Harbor HS (CHS Central)....................................238.0 (S/<1%)
Great Neck South (Great Neck)...........................................23 6.6 (N/3%)
Plainview-Old Bethpage (Plainview-Old Bethpage)..................232.7 (N/2%)
Roslyn High School (Roslyn).......................................... .....232.1 (N/12%)
Garden City HS (Garden City)............................................. 231.7 (N/0%)
Syosset High School (Syosset)......................................... ..230.7 (N/1%)
Manhasset High School (Manhasset)....................................227 .6 (N/3%)
Jericho HS (Jericho)......................................... .................225.0 (N/<1%)
Paul D. Schreiber (Port Washington).....................................22 3.4 (N/5%)
Herricks High School (Herricks)........................................ ....212.4 (N/1%)
JFK (Bellmore-Merrick).......................................... .............212.0 (N/<1%)
Wantagh High School (Wantagh)......................................... 211.7 (N/<1%)
Locust Valley HS (Locust Valley).........................................21 0.5 (N/4%)
Hauppauge High School (Hauppauge)...................................208. 1 (S/5%)
Harborfields High School (Harborfields Central).......................205.7 (S/3%)
Carle Place Senior High School (Carle Place)..........................200.4 (N/4%)
Half Hollow Hills HS West (Half Hollow Hills)............................197.9 (S/7%)
Half Hollow Hills HS East (Half Hollow Hills).............................197.8 (S/6%)
Ward Melville (Three Village).......................................... .....197.7 (S/2%)
Calhoun (Bellmore-Merrick).......................................... .......197.3 (N/1%)
Great Neck North (Great Neck)...........................................19 6.1 (N/7%)
Smithtown High School East (Smithtown).............................195.2 (S/0%)
Mount Sinai High School (Mount Sinai).................................194.8 (S/1%)
Gen. Douglas MacArthur HS (LEVITTOWN)............................194.3 (N/4%)
Earl L. Vandermeulen HS (Port Jefferson)..............................193.5 (S/3%)
North Shore HS (North Shore)............................................ 192.6 (N/6%)
George W. Hewlett (Hewlett-Woodmere)..............................191.7 (N/1%)
Babylon Senior High School (Babylon)...................................190.0 (S/6%)
Massapequa High School (Massapequa)................................186.8 (N/<1%)
Elwood/John Glenn HS (Elwood).......................................... .186.4 (S/12%)
Lynbrook Senior HS (Lynbrook)........................................ ....186.3 (N/<1%)
New Hyde Park Memorial (NHP)............................................1 86.0 (N/4%)
Bayport-Blue Point HS (Bayport-Blue Point)............................185.8 (S/4%)
Oyster Bay HS (Oyster Bay-East Norwich).............................183.4 (N/9%)
Mattituck SHS (Mattituck-Cutchogue)..................................178.9 (S/4%)
Hicksville High School (Hicksville)...................................... ...178.1 (N/9%)
Northport SHS (Northport-East Northport).............................177.5 (S/5%)
Westhampton Beach SHS (Westhampton Beach).....................177.3 (S/3%)
South Side High School (Rockville Centre).............................175.4 (N/11%)
Smithtown HS West (Smithtown)....................................... ..173.3 (S/4%)
Walt Whitman HS (South Huntington)...................................171. 6 (S/23%)
Floral Park Memorial (Floral Park)..........................................170 .8 (N/10%)
Islip High School (Islip)........................................... ............169.8 (S/19%)
Lindenhurst High School (Lindenhurst)..................................168 .8 (S/7%)
Mepham (Bellmore-Merrick).......................................... .......168.6 (N/2%)
West Islip Senior High School (West Islip)..............................167.9 (S/3%)
Sayville High School (Sayville)........................................ .....166.6 (S/3%)
Bethpage Senior High School (Bethpage)...............................165.7 (N/6%)
Connetquot High School (Connetquot)...................................164 .3 (S/9%)
Valley Stream North (VS North)............................................ 163.9 (N/3%)
Island Trees HS (Island Trees)............................................ .162.6 (N/6%)
Bridgehampton School (Bridgehampton).................................16 2.1 (S/31%)
Valley Stream South HS (VS South)......................................161.3 (N/4%)
Kings Park High School (Kings Park)......................................159.3 (S/3%)
Commack High School (Commack)........................................1 59.0 (S/2%)
Eastport-South Manor (Eastport-South Manor).......................158.6 (S/??)
Southold High School (Southold)........................................ ..157.9 (S/7%)
Pierson (Sag Harbor)........................................... ..............157.2 (S/3%)
Mineola High School (Mineola)......................................... ....157.1 (N/10%)
East Islip High School (East Islip).........................................157 .0 (S/5%)
Oceanside Senior High School............................................ .156.7 (N/3%)
Division Avenue HS (Levittown)....................................... ....151.5 (N/5%)
Glen Cove HS (Glen Cove)............................................. .....151.4 (N/16%)
Baldwin SHS (Baldwin)......................................... ..............150.1 (N/0% ??)
Miller Place High School (Miller Place)...................................149.9 (S/2%)
Valley Stream Central (VS Central)......................................149. 2 (N/3%)
Seaford High School (Seaford)......................................... ...147.7 (N/1%)
Plainedge Senior High School (Plainedge)..............................145.0 (N/6%)
H. Frank Carey HS (Sewanhaka)....................................... ..141.7 (N/13%)
Elmont Memorial (Elmont).......................................... ........141.1 (N/23%)
W. Tresper Clarke High School (East Meadow).......................138.3 (N/9%)
Shoreham-Wading River (Shoreham-Wading River)..................137.8 (S/2%)
Long Beach High School (Long Beach)..................................136.7 (N/14%)
Sewanhaka HS (Sewanhaka)....................................... .......136.3 (N/29%)
Newfield High School (Middle Country)..................................135.7 (S/13%)
Huntington High School (Huntington)....................................13 4.7 (S)
Village School (Great Neck)............................................. ...132.6 (N/0%)
Sachem High School West (Sachem)....................................131.5 (S/8%)
Shelter Island HS (Shelter Island)........................................131 .2 (S/??)
Malverne High School (Malverne)........................................ .130.1 (N/22%)
Sachem High School East (Sachem).....................................129.3 (S/??)
West Hempstead HS (West Hempstead)...............................129.2 (N/9%)
Patchogue-Medford HS (Patchogue-Medford)........................127.9 (S/12%)
Farmingdale High School (Farmingdale).................................127. 7 (N/12%)
East Hampton High School (East Hampton)...........................125.7 (S/6%)
West Babylon SHS (West Babylon)......................................125. 5 (S/13%)
Lawrence High School (Lawrence).......................................1 24.8 (N/17%)
Rocky Point High School (Rocky Point).................................123.2 (S/10%)
Comsewogue (Brookhaven-Comsewogue).............................120.7 (S/9%)
Southampton High School (Southampton)............................120.4 (S/9%)
Longwood High School (Longwood).....................................115 .7 (S/17%)
Center Moriches High School (Center Moriches).....................115.0 (S/11%)
East Meadow High School (East Meadow).............................114.0 (N/8%)
Bay Shore SHS (Bay Shore)............................................ ...111.9 (S/35%)
East Rockaway SHS (East Rockaway)..................................111.8 (N/11%)
Hampton Bays Secondary (Hampton Bays)............................111.6 (S/16%)
North Babylon HS (North Babylon).......................................111 .4 (S/6%)
William Floyd High School (William Floyd)...............................104.8 (S/28%)
Riverhead High School (Riverhead)....................................... .99.6 (S/27%)
Centereach High School (Middle Country)...............................99.3 (S/12%)
Deer Park High School (Deer Park).........................................95.8 (S/13%)
Bellport High School (South Country).....................................90.6 (S/19%)
Walter G. O'Connell (Copiague)........................................ .....90.3 (S/28%)
Brentwood High School (Brentwood)......................................8 4.8 (S/54%)
Amityville Memorial (Amityville)...................................... .......78.0 (S/35%)
Central Islip HS (Central Islip)............................................ ..57.2 (S/27%)
Freeport High School (Freeport)........................................ ...53.3 (N/26%)
Hempstead High School (Hempstead)....................................37. 9 (N/42%)
Roosevelt (Roosevelt)....................................... .................34.1 (N/100%)
Westbury High School (Westbury)........................................ 32.9 (N/64%)
Wyandanch Memorial (Wyandanch)....................................... 13.8 (S/26%)

[ambralita]

Wow, that is telling. That is really depressing, actually. What is a family to do? I suppose could look into Catholic or charter...?

[LIgirl74]

I don't know anything about Riverhead school district personally but I wanted to comment on the whole Catholic School thing. I went to Catholic school for a year and a half in high school. It was my decision to go to Catholic School. I went to public school prior to that all my life. I have to tell you, I found that most Catholic school kids were rebellious in many ways. It was very strange. The girls were way more caddy and stuck up and thought who they were and most of them were sexually active. This is back in 1989 and I know kids today are more sexually active earlier than back then but in that year and for the things that were going on it made me make a personal decision to go back to public school and never send my kids to Catholic School. Also, I dated a guy when I was in my early 20's who attended and graduated from Catholic school all his life. He remained friends with most of his Catholic HS friends and I can tell you that they were all drug addicts. They were into cocaine and also trying heroin. This was in 1996 before heroin was so large at hand like it is right now. Also, I have a few other friends who were separate from this bunch that went to Catholic school and also got caught up into drugs and thrown out of college. I'm not saying drugs aren't in public schools, b/c they are all over the island. It's a shame. I just wanted to let you know that sometimes, Catholic school is not the better than public school. I too, like you am house hunting and I know everyone says, location, location, location. If I were you, I would try to find a house with a better school district as it holds value for your home when you are affiliated with a good school district. I noticed this too, as I search for a new home, the houses with the worst districts, have come down a lot in price yet the houses affiliated with good schools, are holding their value better. Just a word of advice I wanted to pass along to you as I've been told also. Good luck with your house hunting.

[dman72]

Originally Posted by ambralita

Wow, that is telling. That is really depressing, actually. What is a family to do? I suppose could look into Catholic or charter...?

..and what you'd spend on that you could probably upgrade your house in a better district..areas like Rocky Point, Miller Place, Wading River, etc.

[ambralita]

dman: what is this rating based on? Who issued these statistics, and when? The RHSD rates as "Good" on the NYS school report cards for 2006-07.

[ambralita]

LIGirl: it must be all those uniforms! I too went to Catholic school, and boarding school. Every school has its share of rebellion. I agree that the school district will affect house value now and later. It's just such a shame b/c we finally found a house that has LOW taxes and is not in a congested area. You just can't win!! Good luck on your hunt too.

[dman72]

Originally Posted by ambralita

dman: what is this rating based on? Who issued these statistics, and when? The RHSD rates as "Good" on the NYS school report cards for 2006-07.

It's a compilation from the lovely forumite Sean Sean Sean that uses the regents scores in Math, English, and History, which is the same methodology used by a web site that makes you pay to see the recent data.

New York Public School Rankings

[ambralita]

Okay, just wanted to verify.

[dman72]

Originally Posted by ambralita

Okay, just wanted to verify.

It isn't the end all and be all, but it gives you a pretty good indication of what the students in the schools are achieving.

I for a fact know that there are some very solid teachers in a school district like Brentwood..I know a handful through my wife and her co-workers spouses and such... and if your kids go there and managed to not get beat up every day or avoided playing down to their peers, they can still get a good education.