Moving to Gulfport in August (Biloxi, Pascagoula: employment, job transfer, best school districts)

[wearynomad]

Greetings:

My wife and I moved our family to the Midwest from Louisiana two years ago due to job transfers (please review my previous threads). We must now relocate to Gulfport for a year as my wife's company is going through a transition phase to move south. We're really looking forward to coming back .

We are pretty familiar with the Gulfport (pre- and post-Katrina), having spent many weekends there while living in Baton Rouge. My daughter even attended a ballet school there.

Now that we will be living there, my biggest concern is finding an excellent elementary school for my children. Are there any schools there with a diverse student body and a decent representation of african-american students/teachers? Will it be better to put them in private school, and if so, which schools have the best reputation?

I also have to find employment while we're down there, and was wondering:

1. Where can most I.T. related positions be found? Is it worth it to apply to state jobs? How about Stennis Space Center?

2. Do people commute to Mobile, AL or Slidell LA, and if so, what's the travel time (if I remember correctly, it's about a 45 min trip to the latter)?


Thanks in advance for your comments, advice, etc.

wn

[BarbG]

Originally Posted by wearynomad

Greetings:

My wife and I moved our family to the Midwest from Louisiana two years ago due to job transfers (please review my previous threads). We must now relocate to Gulfport for a year as my wife's company is going through a transition phase to move south. We're really looking forward to coming back .

We are pretty familiar with the Gulfport (pre- and post-Katrina), having spent many weekends there while living in Baton Rouge. My daughter even attended a ballet school there.

Now that we will be living there, my biggest concern is finding an excellent elementary school for my children. Are there any schools there with a diverse student body and a decent representation of african-american students/teachers? Will it be better to put them in private school, and if so, which schools have the best reputation?

I also have to find employment while we're down there, and was wondering:

1. Where can most I.T. related positions be found? Is it worth it to apply to state jobs? How about Stennis Space Center?

2. Do people commute to Mobile, AL or Slidell LA, and if so, what's the travel time (if I remember correctly, it's about a 45 min trip to the latter)?


Thanks in advance for your comments, advice, etc.

wn

I haven't lived on the coast since Katrina, so I can't speak for the schools other than to say that Long Beach and Ocean Springs are the best school districts there on the coast.

IT related positions -- I would check with Stennis for sure, there's a Job Corp center right there. Also, the casinos, the banks (Hancock Bank is huge there), and Northrup Grumman & Chevron refinery in Pascagoula.

My husband commuted to Slidell for work, and the drive from Gulfport, if close Hwy 49 / I-10 interchange, would be about 45 minutes to the Slidell exit. To Mobile, from the Hwy 49 / I-10 interchange, you are looking at about an hour. Yes, people commute to those areas from MS. Long Beach and Diamondhead have alot of 'bedroom residents' who commute to Slidell or New Orleans from those towns.

[wearynomad]

Thank you for the previous reply.


Can anyone tell me about some community organizations that are serving the African - American sections of Gulfport/Biloxi? How can I help with Katrina relief - related organizations?

Thanks again...