relocating, need city info on, Camdenton, Marshfield, St. Robert

[amyers12345]

I can give you quite a bit of advice on schools, as I was born and raised in the area.

Lebanon has large schools, but very political. There is no medium social status in the entire town. There are the druggies and the rich kids. There was a beating of 2 boys Sunday night in which one 17 year old died, the other is in critical condition. This took place at the ball field where my son plays nearly every night. It was over a text message accidentally sent to another man's girlfriend--wrong number.

Conway schools- rated some of the best around. There are no other comparable small schools. I went to Conway, and my kids go there now. Of course, the problem I have is that it is very competetive between the parents. The baseball and basketball teams went to state this year, they participate in the A+ program, and were ranked a gold star school a couple of years back. I also teach part-time there. Housing was very hard to come by, but there are a few options available now.

Marshfield schools- drastically improving, not very good sports programs. They have built a very nice new high school, and there are many nice people there.

Strafford- if I had to send mine elsewhere, I would definitely send them there. Great sizing, many extra-curricular programs, admirable teachers, and great academics. Very expensive living conditions, and not much to do without going into the city.

Niangua- regaining accrediation that was taken a few years back. graduating class averages around 12, and most share the same last name. Horrible, horrible town.

St. Robert- The older children will go to Waynesville, which is also the school for military children. There is no high school on base, so there is a very diverse community which is hard to find here. Ranked pretty good, but nothing stands out.

Stoutland- umm... baseball team won state this year, but lacking tremendously academically. The baseball was a once in a lifetime thing.

Camdenton- sucks, but they just built a huge new high school.

I hope this helps, I can give you lots more info if needed, but now I'm exhausted and headed to bed!

[la_missourienne]

Wow, amyers12345, you make Lebanon sound even worse than I would LOL! Thing is, I would not have classified the druggies as separate from the rich kids...to be fair, though, there are druggies among all the income levels. Non-druggies as well. The school is driven by the politics of those with the right "last names". However, I always heard that it was pretty much the same way in all of the schools listed there except St. Robert/Waynesville (not at all the same category of environment, not easy to compare, really).
Conway best around? Hmmm, can't say for myself, but my cousins that went through the Conway system didn't think too much of it and I never knew it to stand out much from the others. (Not saying amyers12345 is wrong, just offering a different point of view, please no one take offense here, not intended as attack! Maybe I need to meet more grads from there...) Knew one girl from Stoutland and she was rather pleased with her experience there, (did really well, went on to college, etc), so who knows?
The schools could be compared statistically, which I looked up each out of curiosity. Here are the state education department school accountability report cards for each of those schools:
Conway
Lebanon
Niangua
Marshfield
Stoutland
Camdenton
Waynesville
Strafford

Then again, as a teacher, I can also tell you that the stats don't tell the whole story. If the school system is the most important issue, it's best to not only compare the stats (most of these schools look about the same based on just that), but to also look at academic offerings (how are the elementaries organized, how is 9th grade dealt with, do the high schools offer vo-tech and/or AP courses, etc).
As for the town of Lebanon itself (which was the base of the OP, I think?), I can give you the perspective of the outsider student that moved in, graduated there, then came back years later to teach there as well (both different experiences by far). You are welcome to pv me as well, have lots of info to provide, too. Good luck!

[jrob]

I can give you quite a bit of advice on schools, as I was born and raised in the area.


Stoutland- umm... baseball team won state this year, but lacking tremendously academically. The baseball was a once in a lifetime thing.

Response

Stoutland Elementary was top 10 in the state in student achievement testing in 2006 and is also a Gold Star School. Achievement test scores rank in the tops of the area (Frisco League). For several years Stoutland has ranked very high academically. The School District received Performance with Distinction last year as well. Stoutland Schools has met or exceeded No Child Left Behind's Annual Yearly Progress for several years. Stoutland High School offers A+, vocational programs by fully certified staff to include vocational business and vocational agriculture.

Many schools in the area or on the "Needs Improvement"" list published by DESE to include Camdenton, Waynesville, and Lebanon. Stoutland is not on that list.

The baseball team has been to the final 4 two times and is a state power house year in and year out, so it isn't a once in a lifetime thing. Boys and girls basketball teams have also made multiple trips to the final 4. Cross Country and track have had several state champs in their programs as well. So championship caliber athletics as well as academics is not a once in a lifetime thing. Needless to say, the person who is so hung up on Conway is very misinformed.

[cruise40]

Stay out of St Robert if you can. The law there is not on your side. The officials there are all developers looking to make a buck at your expense. I know because they are developing the land all next to me and they are trying to force me to sell at a loss. Bad things going on in St Robert. I personally live in Lebanon and it is not much better. Everyone with money is connected and they don't want anyone to prosper but themselves. Local Millionaires control everything , even the government and law!!!!!!!!!!!!!!