Moving to Coral Gables/ Coconut Grove W/ kids- looking for advice! (Miami: real estate, house)

[honeybee5517]

Hi,

My husband got a job in Coral Gables in East Coral Gables near 37th and Flagler. We have a 7 year old and a 3 year old. I would like advice on schools in the area. I would like to remain near his work, but finding a good public school for the kids is imperative. Are there areas of Coral Gables that are more family friendly than others? I am concerned about elementary schools, the middle schools they feed to, and the high schools the kids will eventually go to. I have read school ratings online, but I would like to know more. I am very familiar with Miami and Southeast Florida in general, but I have no living experience in Coral Gables. Should we possibly look toward Coconut Grove? A family friendly, safe area is priority.

Please share your opinions with me. I would love to know of specific schools and areas within the Coral Gables and Coconut Groves communities.

Thank you!

[grandcentraluk]

My husband got a job in Coral Gables in East Coral Gables near 37th and Flagler. We have a 7 year old and a 3 year old. I would like advice on schools in the area. I would like to remain near his work, but finding a good public school for the kids is imperative. Are there areas of Coral Gables that are more family friendly than others? I am concerned about elementary schools, the middle schools they feed to, and the high schools the kids will eventually go to. I have read school ratings online, but I would like to know more. I am very familiar with Miami and Southeast Florida in general, but I have no living experience in Coral Gables. Should we possibly look toward Coconut Grove? A family friendly, safe area is priority.

Please share your opinions with me. I would love to know of specific schools and areas within the Coral Gables and Coconut Groves communities.

If schools are most important and those are your two choices, live in Coral Gables and not Coconut Grove, unless you plan to pay for private school (some very good private schools are located in the Grove). Coral Gables has excellent public elementary schools - I think there are four that serve the Gables and depending on where you live you could have access to more than one via a lottery system. However, beware of the middle and high schools which are terrible - there is a big drop off between the elementary school and middle school and then high school. I believe Coral Gables elementary goes through 8th grade and that would be a good option but I would not send my kids to Ponce de Leon Middle School and I would prefer to avoid Coral Gables High. The schools in the Grove are not good, from elementary on up (high school is also Coral Gables High) unless your child is in the international language program at Carver Middle but I think they have to start at Sunset Elementary in Coral Gables in order to continue in that program - I could be wrong as I don't know the program that well.

If you want good schools and your husband is willing to do a bit of a commute, consider Pinecrest, Palmetto Bay or East Kendall. His commute would be under an hour. Those are family friendly, safe areas with some of the best schools in the county. Many people pay a premium to live in Pinecrest and Palmetto Bay (myself included) just to know that our kids will land at Palmetto High School. The fact of the matter is that our school system isn't great so the majority of people can't live near their work and have great schools. My husband and I both commute but we feel it is worth it to live where we live.

Finally, be sure to look at the school system's website to see what school is zoned for a particular house you are considering. Don't rely on your real estate agent. They often don't know or will flat out lie (this has happened to several people I know and to me as well).

I'm happy to answer any other questions about schools - I grew up here and attended a half dozen of them (some good, some bad).

[NATEBEAR]

What you will find is that good areas with zero commute to work and good public schools do not go hand in hand. The best public schools we have are in the Pinecrest area-Pinecrest Elementary, Palmetto Elementary, Palmetto Middle School, and Miami Palmetto Senior High. That being said, there just aren't great schools here period. There are many wonderful elementary schools in various areas filled with volunteers (and donated $) and that's what makes them great. However, once your child gets to middle and high school, the volunteers and $ are gone and your child is just one of thousands of kids. That's the state of our public schools-no money, understaffed, and overcrowded. If education is your number one priority, send your children to private school. Another consideration would be magnet schools. They begin in first grade, with applications having been submitted the previous year in October. Some go up to 8th grade, but you'll be stuck without a feeder high school.

[Wild Style]

Originally Posted by NATEBEAR

What you will find is that good areas with zero commute to work and good public schools do not go hand in hand. The best public schools we have are in the Pinecrest area-Pinecrest Elementary, Palmetto Elementary, Palmetto Middle School, and Miami Palmetto Senior High. That being said, there just aren't great schools here period. There are many wonderful elementary schools in various areas filled with volunteers (and donated $) and that's what makes them great. However, once your child gets to middle and high school, the volunteers and $ are gone and your child is just one of thousands of kids. That's the state of our public schools-no money, understaffed, and overcrowded. If education is your number one priority, send your children to private school. Another consideration would be magnet schools. They begin in first grade, with applications having been submitted the previous year in October. Some go up to 8th grade, but you'll be stuck without a feeder high school.

coconut grove elem is a A school, the middle school the area is zoned for (Ponce De Leon Middle) is A. I can't speak for COral Gables Senior High, I can't seem to find their school grade for last year.

I don't know about the middle school in Brickell Area but I think the elem was a C school in 2010, it may have been a B last year, not sure.

I think Brickell down to Pinecrest is fairly safe bet. Well, as long as you remain in east, or center grove. Also, you have to be careful with parts of Coral Gables. Despite the perception, that place is NOT all good.

[honeybee5517]

Originally Posted by grandcentraluk

If schools are most important and those are your two choices, live in Coral Gables and not Coconut Grove, unless you plan to pay for private school (some very good private schools are located in the Grove). Coral Gables has excellent public elementary schools - I think there are four that serve the Gables and depending on where you live you could have access to more than one via a lottery system. However, beware of the middle and high schools which are terrible - there is a big drop off between the elementary school and middle school and then high school. I believe Coral Gables elementary goes through 8th grade and that would be a good option but I would not send my kids to Ponce de Leon Middle School and I would prefer to avoid Coral Gables High. The schools in the Grove are not good, from elementary on up (high school is also Coral Gables High) unless your child is in the international language program at Carver Middle but I think they have to start at Sunset Elementary in Coral Gables in order to continue in that program - I could be wrong as I don't know the program that well.

If you want good schools and your husband is willing to do a bit of a commute, consider Pinecrest, Palmetto Bay or East Kendall. His commute would be under an hour. Those are family friendly, safe areas with some of the best schools in the county. Many people pay a premium to live in Pinecrest and Palmetto Bay (myself included) just to know that our kids will land at Palmetto High School. The fact of the matter is that our school system isn't great so the majority of people can't live near their work and have great schools. My husband and I both commute but we feel it is worth it to live where we live.

Finally, be sure to look at the school system's website to see what school is zoned for a particular house you are considering. Don't rely on your real estate agent. They often don't know or will flat out lie (this has happened to several people I know and to me as well).

I'm happy to answer any other questions about schools - I grew up here and attended a half dozen of them (some good, some bad).

Thank you! That is exactly the kind of info I was looking for. There are a lot of great elementary schools, but I don't want to get my kids started in a school system that matriculates into middle and high schools that are terrible. We've had our daughter in the private school system before and although we are open to it, just the thought of its cost over time hurts.

Both my husband and I grew up in the Ft. Lauderdale area, but we know nothing about schools in SE Florida anymore, especially considering that we haven't lived in the area for years. I can look up test scores all day, but they don't give me a well rounded review of a school. I fear, too, that a lot of reviews written on Great Schools are from disgruntled students whose grammar is worrisome.

I am aware that the school system in SE Florida is not the best. Knowing and trusting the environment that will house my child for a majority of time is extremely important, but I'm becoming so overwhelmed, I'm ready to just toss a coin and move to where it lands on a map.

[honeybee5517]

Upon further search, even good arts magnet programs are in the Palmetto Bay/ Pinecrest area. I'm looking into Perrine and South Miami Center. Does anyone know anything about either of these schools?

[JacobMAX]

There are two South Miami's actually ( South Miami MS and South Miami HS ), I don't know about the middle but I do know that a relative of mine paid for a private school to avoid putting his kid in South Miami High. I would recommend looking into charter schools, there are quite a few in the area, usually they are better (if not much better) than the regular public ones.