Which area is better? Franklin, Foxboro, Wrentham, Mansfield, or North Attleboro? (Boston: transplants, apartment)

[thenewtexan]

Originally Posted by mvnagn

thenewtexan, you are correct in stating that the schools in the Hockomock League are bigger than I would like but the other cities you recommend looking into are a little too far from Attleboro which is where my husband will be working. I would really like to stay within a 20 min radius given he will be driving in snow quite often. I was just looking into the Norfolk County Agriculture School in Wrentham because my daughter is on the vet track at her current high school (with an enrollment of 5000 students) and this seems like it would be a good school to keep her on the same course.

She's used to a school of 5,000? Well, in the good words of Gilda Radner, "never mind."

[mvnagn]

Yes she is! We are in Allen, Texas, the home of the mighty Eagles!! They just completed the ~20,000 person, $63,000,000 HIGH SCHOOL stadium. She would love to go to a smaller school where "everybody knows everybody". So given my previous comments about the towns being too far away from Attleboro, what is your opinion on the cities I've already mentioned?

[thenewtexan]

Originally Posted by mvnagn

Yes she is! We are in Allen, Texas, the home of the mighty Eagles!! They just completed the ~20,000 person, $63,000,000 HIGH SCHOOL stadium. She would love to go to a smaller school where "everybody knows everybody". So given my previous comments about the towns being too far away from Attleboro, what is your opinion on the cities I've already mentioned?

mvnagn: This is so funny because I moved to San Antonio from an area just west of Franklin. I know all about the new stadium, and congrats on the 5A state football title, btw. I saw it showcased on ESPN.

You can't go wrong with any of the towns you mentioned. You probably are already aware that Franklin received some positive publicity with it being declared the safest city in the U.S.

Franklin, Massachusetts declared the safest City in the United States | Berry Insurance Blog

Franklin and Mansfield have grown the fastest. The populations there have just about doubled in the last 25 years or so. By MA standards, that's fast. The good thing is that it's still relatively controlled growth, so you won't have that Frisco-esque feel to it (i.e. 2000% growth in 20 years), and the small town feel will not disappear in three years. The largest of the high schools will have about 1,600 students, same as 4A. Foxboro would probably be a larger 3A school. Wrentham has a regional high school with Norfolk and Plainville called King Philip. School district boundaries in MA are very simple compared to Texas in that the school district boundary is the same as the town boundary. All of the towns are middle to upper middle class and safe.

You mentioned Norfolk Agricultural High School. That serves over 20 towns and has about 500 students. I'm not that familiar with vocational high schools. Some of the towns are "tuitioned", and not all provide transportation. It is located in Walpole. Your best bet would be to contact the school.

All of the towns are right along the 495 corridor, and are viable in that it is the perfect spot for commuters going to Boston, Providence, and even Worcester in some cases. The area grew a lot in the 80s when kids from Greater Boston grew up and discovered they could not afford to live there.

[TAM88]

At one point, Franklin was the fastest growing town east of the Mississippi back in the 90s.

495 being built, coupled with people from the city (Boston, Newton, Cambridge, etc.) wanting more space and better schools along businesses popping up along the 495 corridor lead to the big population growth.

[mvnagn]

thenewtexan, I purposely did not choose Frisco for that reason. It reminds me of a bunch of lab rats being randomly dropped into a maze and they're all scrambling trying to figure out how to maneuver it without climbing all over each other!
Thanks on the congratulations for winning state champs (although I had nothing to do with it)!
I think because the towns are so similar that my decision will ultimately be made by finding the best house within my budget that is within that 20 min mark from my husbands job. Thanks for all your input!

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by mvnagn

I think because the towns are so similar that my decision will ultimately be made by finding the best house within my budget that is within that 20 min mark from my husbands job. Thanks for all your input!

They are somewhat similar, but have their differences. North Attleborough is a little more crowded than the other places but also has a great community feel. Keep in mind that the schools are looking at big cuts for next year, but then again they have the tendency to cry wolf. Have you looked at Norton as well? It has a fairly small HS that ranks fairly well. It's right next to Attleboro and lots of open space, although not much shopping in town. If you have any questions on a particular town around there feel free to ask or PM me.

[mvnagn]

thenewtexan,
You said that the school boundaries are simple in that if I live in the town of Franklin, my kids will attend Franklin schools? Is that true of all towns in MA regardless of how close to the next city/town/school district we are? I just need this verified before I go any further in my house search. I'm finding houses that I like but sometimes they are closer to the schools in the neighboring town than the ones in their own district. I just want to make sure that if I want my kids to go to Foxboro schools and I buy a house in Foxboro, they won't end up going to Wrentham because the school is closer. Anyone else, feel free to respond!

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by mvnagn

thenewtexan,
You said that the school boundaries are simple in that if I live in the town of Franklin, my kids will attend Franklin schools? Is that true of all towns in MA regardless of how close to the next city/town/school district we are? I just need this verified before I go any further in my house search. I'm finding houses that I like but sometimes they are closer to the schools in the neighboring town than the ones in their own district. I just want to make sure that if I want my kids to go to Foxboro schools and I buy a house in Foxboro, they won't end up going to Wrentham because the school is closer. Anyone else, feel free to respond!

That would be correct! With that said, some towns are tied into the same "regional school district". In the area you speak of, the only example of that would be Wrentham, Norfolk and Plainville being part of King Phillip for HS and Jr. HS. The idea is the same however, in that if you buy in any of those 3 towns they will not end up anywhere BUT King Phillip Regional High. Hope that makes sense.

[TAM88]

Originally Posted by mvnagn

thenewtexan,
You said that the school boundaries are simple in that if I live in the town of Franklin, my kids will attend Franklin schools? Is that true of all towns in MA regardless of how close to the next city/town/school district we are? I just need this verified before I go any further in my house search. I'm finding houses that I like but sometimes they are closer to the schools in the neighboring town than the ones in their own district. I just want to make sure that if I want my kids to go to Foxboro schools and I buy a house in Foxboro, they won't end up going to Wrentham because the school is closer. Anyone else, feel free to respond!

If you bought a house in Franklin, your kids would go to school in Franklin. King Philip is a regional school system. Three towns make up the district: Norfolk, Wrentham and Plainville. Each of those towns have their own elementary school. So if you bought a house in say Norfolk, your kids would go to elementary school in Norfolk, and then go to the KP Regional Middle School, which also happens to be located in Norfolk, and then to the KP Regional High School, which is located in Wrentham. For grades 7-12, kids go to the regional schools. There's a Middle School for grades 7-8 and then a High School for grades 9-12.

As long as the town you buy the house in is not part of a regional school district, your kids will attend school in the town you live in. Most towns in Massachusetts operate this way, especially in Eastern Mass where the population is a lot higher than in Western Mass.

Foxboro, Mansfield, Franklin and North Attleboro all have their own school systems. So if you buy a house in any of those towns, your kids will be going to school in those towns.

[mvnagn]

Thanks guys!!