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doxie, I am a product of Horry County Schools (Myrtle Beach High School) and my stepchildren are a product of Socastee High Schools. My stepson got a four year academic ride to Clemson but turned it down for Ga Tech's engineering school from which he graduated with honors. He also got accepted to Stanford University and turned them down because of distance.
My stepdaughters and I all graduated from the University of South Carolina and they both have excellent jobs and live in Manhattan.
Everyone I know that I went to through school with has at least a four year degree. All of my friends kids with very few exceptions have either graduated from a four year school or are still in school.
I guess my point is that however poorly ranked our schools may be, higher education is not only encouraged but expected.
You'll find all kids in our school system take the SATs not just those going to college.
You'll find all kids in our school system take the SATs not just those going to college...
This past Spring, 47% of Horry County seniors took the SAT. <Details> (http://www.horrycountyschools.net/cms/One.aspx?portalId=743462&pageId=14294599 - broken link) Horry County is a big place, and the percentage may (or maybe not) be higher within MB, I haven't seen any numbers by specific schools. The county's public high schools, as a whole, are about on par with the national average scores.
I am also a product of SC public schools, which led to a degree from Ga Tech ( I am not blueherons son ) but that was many years ago and many things have changed since then in SC. My kids are grown, so I don't really have a dog in this fight, but all in all, I'm grateful that my grandkids live in NC and go to NC public schools.
Since I started this thread, I thought I'd go ahead and post an additional question since all of you were so good about giving me your input. Here's the deal...it's looking even better now that my husband will end up getting the job offer. He's been told that we can live anywhere along the coast of South Carolina (Charleston, Myrtle Beach) and go as far north as Wilmington, NC. I'm not sure how much knowledge you have about those three areas, but if you had your choice, which area would you choose to live and why? Please keep in mind that we have a daughter who's a freshman in high school. Thanks so much!
A friend of mine moved to Charleston and loves it. I've been there several times and also like it a lot but visiting is never the same as living somewhere. If I were moving now and could choose, I would choose Charleston based on what I've seen and heard. Wilmington is very nice also, went there last year for a few days but Charleston has a lot more to offer.
When we were deciding where to move, we looked in the Charleston area as well. We fell in love with a little town called Summerville which is a suburb just to the west of Charleston. It actually was our first choice except for one thing...it was over an hour to the beach with traffic and being close to the beach was very high on our priority list...hence we ended up in MB. Since beach life is not high on your list, Summerville might be a place to look.
I can't tell you anything about the schools in Summerville as we didn't look into that since our kids are all out of school. You can use the link earlier in this thread to look up any school in SC.
The town was delightful. If/when you look there, PM me and I'll give you the name of the real estate agent we used...top notch fellow who spent the entire day showing us around even though we told him we weren't sure that we were going to move there.
We also considered Wilmington but the taxes in NC are higher than SC and that helped us decide on SC.
well me and my wife bought a house in conway but we dont like alot of people so we are out side of town and it is perfect we can still go to the beach when we want and can get away from the crowd when we want and coming from north of chicago we couldnt be any more happy
Doxie....Glad you posted. I have the same questions. My husband has a couple job interviews coming up. One in Atlanta, and the other in Murrells Inlet. You said your daughter goes to a top notch school...Can you tell me which one? You can DM me if you want. We were looking into Peachtree City, but wanted to know what towns are good closer to Atlanta. Schools are VERY important, as my son has special needs. Also wanted to mention, that I read good things about Summerville, SC. Dorchester school district is supposed to be very good. Nice, safe, family neighborhood, but just going by what I read on here. Check it out.
Didn't Atlanta just suffer through some ridiculous system wide grade inflation scandal?
There are some local schools in the MB / HC area which appear to be very well regarded.
Greatschools.com is a reliable and accurate resource.
I live in NYC and my oldest is going to Brooklyn Tech because it's close. His SHSAT score would have easily qualified for Stuyvesant, which is one of the top High Schools in the United States: So is Brooklyn Tech.
Anyway, I have some idea about what a "good" school is. I attended top tier schools as well. You have great choices in MB.
I lived in Atlanta (Lilburn) for many years and now live in North Myrtle Beach. Have one in College and one in the 5th grade. Schools aren't terrible but you have to stay involved because there is a lot of turn over in students. I understand that schools in the Pawley's Island area are better than the north end but I am not sure. I have enjoyed living here, it is a slow pace in the winter but that allows me sometime with the family. There are two weeks of bikers but I don't hang out where they do so it is not a problem. Housing is cheap, insurance and taxes are low. If you meet some good people, that helps the transition. All of your friends will think you play golf and go to the beach everyday and they will visit for a free vacation. I miss Atlanta but, this is not bad. When I visit now, I get tired of the traffic. Also, we have gotten to know people because we are what they call locals, (big deal here) and they give you a little special attention and better service when you visit their businesses. Good luck.
Any school in Horry County is going to be a lot different than other parts of SC. SC gets a lot of attention about poor schools from the poor parts of the state. Horry County is not a poor county. It has everything to do with the student as well. If your child wants a quality education then they will get it. If they don't they won't. Horry county schools have always been very good and continue to be. Many folks cannot differentiate educational statistics from the very bad rural areas of SC where kids and schools are struggling. Those areas have always hurt the state's average. Native Carolinians tend to realize this but transplants do not. They just read the overall state's score and assume it is the same everywhere. Greenville, Spartanburg, Horry county and many other places have quality education. There used to many opportunities for students who excelled and I am sure it is still the same. If your child is average to below average then I am sure they will get thrown into some large class rooms and just pushed through the system, but if they are gifted they will be deemed so and have many opportunities. UNC Chapel Hill used to run many school programs here for gifted students as I believe Duke did as well. If they still do and your child qualifies they will have all the opportunities in the world. Even if your child is a mid range student I believe they would have every opportunity. I recall going to Charleston on field trips to get to see and learn about nuclear submarines which in the early 80s was a really big deal. I can only imagine what kids get to do nowadays.
Bottom line is that the student is going to get what they put in. I went to Conway area schools and it was great. I had friends who went to MB and they had plenty of opportunities. I don't know about Carolina Forest, I know they have won some awards but also have been in the news for a lot for violence. I would also imagine that because Carolina Forest is basically a transplant area that the school makeup would be the same and I don't know if I would like my kid in the middle of that. Many people like to send their kids to the smaller schools.
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) but that was many years ago and many things have changed since then in SC. My kids are grown, so I don't really have a dog in this fight, but all in all, I'm grateful that my grandkids live in NC and go to NC public schools.
