Amherst or Bedford?? (Manchester, Nashua, Milford: how much, home, school districts)

[monkey05mama]

Hello!
We are planning to relocate to NH this summer. I have been researching all the different S. NH areas and have gotten it down to either Amherst or Bedford. My husband was there about a month ago and said he really liked Bedford, they both seem equally beautiful and perfect for us... Is there one or the other that anyone can tell me something about to help me decide? Thanks in advance! I can't wait to get to beautiful NH!!

[east2west]

Currently Amherst property taxes are $18.83 per thousand and Bedford is $16.34 per thousand but going up in the fall to almost $20.00 per thousand due to the new high school. The new Bedford high school is predicted to be a very good school. If you go onto Greatschools.net and enter both towns, you will see the test scores for Bedford are higher than Amherst, (comparing elementary and middle schools). Souhegan high school (Amherst) does not have that favorable of reviews from parents on that website. The population of Amherst is around 11000 and Bedford, around 18000. Depending on where you are comuting to work, distance could play a factor, so map out distances from both towns. Having only visited both towns, I can say both are very nice and either would make a great town to live in. Good luck.

[Valerie C]

East to West is right on, Bedford schools are considered a great asset, and like other towns in southern NH, people aren't thrilled with the tax burden, but willing to pay for the top rated schools. And the new high school is a huge plus, the students no longer will be bussed into Manchester's West HS, where there has been a fair amount of news (Manchester high schools in general have been a topic of much news these past few years...)

Another key thing about Bedford is the great location. It's convenient to Rte 93 via 101/293, OR to the Nashua area via Rte 3, Amherst is nice, but location continues to be a problem if you need to commute. Of course if one works from home that is a non-issue...

Where are you moving here from (if you don't mind my asking)? In any case, welcome in advance to NH It IS a beautiful place to visit, and an even better place to live! If you've never been here in the fall, you're in for a treat come October!

[monkey05mama]

Thank you for the replies. I did compare schools on greatschool.net and I don't understand what the reviews are talking about when they say that Amherst High is not a "traditional" high school. Could someone explain what is "different" about it? My children are high achievers so needing extra help wouldn't be a problem, but I am concerned if they would be challanged enough.

[southward bound]

re greatschools.com

I find that website difficult to use. Maybe I just need to get more familiar with it?

Does anyone else have trouble pulling good info off of it? One realtor told me that school districts don't input their information in the same format, and therefore it's difficult to compare one town against another. So, I don't know how dependable that information is when you come right down to it.

[WannaComeHome]

Originally Posted by southward bound

re greatschools.com

I find that website difficult to use. Maybe I just need to get more familiar with it?

Does anyone else have trouble pulling good info off of it? One realtor told me that school districts don't input their information in the same format, and therefore it's difficult to compare one town against another. So, I don't know how dependable that information is when you come right down to it.

Have you tried SchoolMatters.com ? I find them both a bit challenging to follow, but then I don't have any school-aged kids, so it's not that important to me. I think both of them are simply basic tools to give you an idea of the schools, no rating system such as these can truly work that well since so many things that make a school good (or bad) aren't testable to have results. How well the teachers interest the kids and encourage them to reach their full potential isn't really something that can be rated on such websites. But, since it's an impossible situation, they have to come up with something to go by, and this is the best anyone can think of to put together. It's an imperfect situation, but short of visiting the schools and trying to talk with some of the kids or something..... I don't know what would. Best is talking with parents of schoolaged kids.

[monkey05mama]

I looked on Schoolmatters.com also, yes, they are difficult to use. I like to read what the parents have to say. I am moving from Texas and have learned that the test scores do not truly show much about the school. Here, if the children do not pass the state test, the stay back, that way, the school gets more funding, and after repeating a grade, they do better on the state test, so the scores look great. That does not make a good school. It makes a school LOOK good. I taught my children at home for many years and gave the state tests. In my opinion, they mean nothing, the questions are generally very easy, and they do not take into consideration that some children could be great students that just get nervous with tests and do not do well on them. The only fair way to compare schools would be to use the exact same test across the country. But again, that is just my opinion.

[east2west]

"The school opened in 1992, after the two towns separated from the school district based in neighboring Milford. It was established as part of the Coalition of Essential Schools, using a philosophy that emphasizes cooperation between students and faculty, most notably reflected in the fact that teachers are called by their first names." I got this off of Wikipedia under Souhegan High School, Amherst, NH.

Also, there was an article that I read a few weeks ago, that you can go to and get an idea of what non-traditional means. STPNS - "Open tent" project causes national blogger backlash, Milford, New Hampshire

Hope this helps.