Job Offer in Londonderry - Specific question about school rankings and diversity (Manchester: how much, house)

[tamicamp]

Hi...I've been reading thru this site for the past week (when time allows), but have not yet found the answer to my specific questions - altho all the info I have found has been *very* helpful.

My husband has been given the opportunity to take a job in Londonderry and needs to make a decision soon. We weren't necessarily seeking this out, it just came to him, but has the potential to be a good thing for us.

I have 3 children ages 3.5, 5.5 and 7. My oldest son is adopted from Cambodia and we currently live in a small, very "wonder-bread" town. This has been difficult for him, as he is one of the very few people in this town w/dark skin. As a result, I drive 80 miles per day to take him to a charter school in nearby Ann Arbor, which is very diverse. Which brings me to my question:
Q1: how much diversity can we find w/in a 20 minute or less commute to Londonderry?

Also, despite the drive, we LOVE his charter school. He actually started off in our local school - which is considered Excellent - and within 6 weeks they had him convinced his was stupid and his self-esteem plummeted. I am now very leery of "excellent" school districts. Ours are based solely on standardized test scores - which I *hate*. So...my next question:
Q2: what factors are used to determine the ratings/rankings/whatever of the local school districts in that area?

Thank you so much for any input!

[bryfry]

You need to talk to Valerie C. She lives there, works there and has kids in the school system. She can probably answer all your questions.

[AngelaK]

If you have read any of the other education posts on the NH forum, you may have seen my opinions of Londonderry Londonderry is considered to be a very good school system in NH. This is not just from test scores, but it comes from a number of different things. The school culture there tends to be very positive and supportive. The community supports education there, which is important, and which is why the tax rate is a bit high in Londonderry. (In NH, schools are funded at the local level--99% of the time, if you live in a town with higher taxes, the schools are usually better) If your kiddos are involved in special education at all, Londonderry typically does a nice job with their special education programs.

The one thing that you will run into in NH, overall, is that we are not a very diverse state. We are predominantly white. But, it has been my experience that we are also a pretty tolerant state and welcome diversity. Within close proximity to Londonderry is Manchester-the largest and most diverse city in the state. But I would not recommend living there, as the schools are not strong and they are a district in need of improvement and have all kinds of issues. Londonderry is also in close proximity to Nashua, which is probably the 2nd most diverse city in NH. If you live in Londonderry, the commute to Boston Ma or other MA towns is relatively short.

Overall, I like Londonderry a lot. Bryfry is right, Val lives there and can give you a better notion of the type of people there. But I think a move to NH would be a great thing for you and your family.

Also, there is quite a network, actually, of internationally adopted kids in this state, so you could probably hook up with them as well. My colleague actually has adopted children from S. Africa and I know of a lot of children adopted from Asia, Russia, and Romania in NH.

[tamicamp]

Thanks for the info...How do I get in touch directly with Valerie? I can't seem to find an email address for her??

Thanks
Tami

[tamicamp]

Originally Posted by tamicamp

Thanks for the info...How do I get in touch directly with Valerie? I can't seem to find an email address for her??

Thanks
Tami

Okay, as soon as I posted this, I figured it out :-)

[buck naked]

if it's not being too personal - what company are you going to? just curious......

[maestramommy]

tamicamp, we just moved from SoCal to NH. So we went from a VERY diverse place to a place that's mostly white. We looked at Londonderry and Bedford, and ended up in Bedford. I will second what Angela said about the vibe in NH. We are not white and everyone I have met has been very friendly and welcoming. There was a thread on this forum a month or two ago about being biracial in NH, and the sense I got was that no matter what color you are, if you're working hard, and don't try to make NH the same as where you came from, you won't have any problems. That's the simplistic version but i think you know what I mean.

I was very impressed with the schools in Londonderry, esp. the music program at the high school. If we had found a house there we liked better, we probably would've ended up there. It's a little more central between Manchester (where my dh works) and Boston.

[debbiej63]

and within 6 weeks they had him convinced his was stupid and his self-esteem plummeted. I am now very leery of "excellent" school districts.

When we moved to IL, we made sure that we moved into an "excellent" school district from one ranked very poor in NM (who gave them individual attention with small class sizes and allowed them to thrive) and it was the worst mistake we ever made. I ended up home schooling my youngest two's final years of high school.

I hate standardized test scores and school rankings. NC actually dedicates an entire semester prepping them for their standardized tests. They also geared their curriculum around those tests. Other states do this too. I would have rathered they spent that last semester furthering their education and allowing the teachers to get creative teaching to excite the children to learn more.

Many schools have low test scores, not because of the teachers but because they may have a higher amount of students whom English is a second language, come from very poor homes, and in some cases the overall test scores include the scores from special education students. I would choose that low ranking NM school than that high ranked IL school in a heartbeat.

So, personally, if our kids were school aged when we moved to NH, I would have dismissed the school rankings and instead look at class sizes and asked to sit in for a class or two at different schools to see what the dynamics looked like. I believe that the teachers make the difference in how your child learns, not the school test scores. Most teachers hate those tests and wish for some freedom so they could teach the children properly instead of with their hands tied behind them.

[WannaComeHome]

Originally Posted by tamicamp

Thanks for the info...How do I get in touch directly with Valerie? I can't seem to find an email address for her??Thanks Tami

At the moment she's offline trying to clean her computer - something about spyware. She's not sure how long it will take, it depends if she can do it herself or if it needs a specialist!

Best way else to get hold of her, is to look for a post by ValerieC - she's a frequent poster, so most any thread before 8/4 is likely to have a comment by her. click on her screen name and go into the pulldown menu to go to her 'home page'. I believe, since she's a registered realtor with CD, she said she has her office phone number listed - might have to follow to a website, I'm not sure. But it's only a few clicks to find a number, and then you could call her. Just tell her that you're new on the city-data forum and interested in Londonderry info!

[GregW]

Tammicamp - Londonderry has a magnificent school system. I know because I pay a lot of money for it even though I have never had any children in the system. On one hand I resent the taxes but part of me says that is the price you pay for an educated civilized society. Good schools, like Londonderry's, would be cheap at twice the price. Failed schools are way more expensive.

If your hubby takes the job - Welcome to New Hampshire.