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We are considering looking for a house within the boundaries of the Robbinsville, NJ School District.
We looked at West Windsor but an Indian friend of ours who grew up in East Windsor warned us about the extreme competitiveness of West Windsor parents (like sending your kids to Math camps in the Summer instead of sports camps
We also looked at Cranbury but the contract granting Cranbury students a seat in the excellent Princeton HS will expire in a couple of years and the Princeton HS is currently operating at close to capacity.
We are very curious about Robbinsville, NJ because the community seems "younger" as a township in terms of the year houses were developed and the frequency of new construction. Single family residences with comparable square feet, lot size, and amenities seem ~ $200,000 cheaper in Robbinsville (4BR+, 2 BA+, >3000 SF, built after the year 2000).
Unfortunately we don't know anything about the Robbinsville school district aside from the ratings on Inside Schools. Previous posts on City Data mention that there was a serious problem with overcrowding and that the kids were housed in trailers. Could anybody comment on the quality of and the issues facing the Robbinsville school district and Robbinsville in general?
Thank you very much for any info and thoughts!
I don't recall any trailer issues at Robbinsville schools, last time I visited for a soccer game or some such. The school complex is simply massive, and quite modern.
You are right about the general younger feel of the town. Still developing, but close to everything. There really isn't any town, per se. Or no town center, but there are within 5 miles North or South.
The point about WW school competitiveness sounds like what I've heard through the years. The kids tend to focus on homework after school, for a nice 16-hour day. They still have a robust sports program, so it isn't completely like a Stepford town, but there is definitely a more concentrated focus on academics, which may or may not be something your kids can adapt to.
If you need some further specifics, I can try to help, as the town line is across the street from my house.
The new High School opened in 2004 (prior to that the kids went to Lawrence HS). It was high performing out of the gate, a lot of people credited the superintendant Steven Mayer. Dr. Mayer was previously a principal in WW-P. Sadly, he was struck and killed while jogging down Robbinsville-Edinburg Rd earlier this year.
There is a "Town Center" on Rt 33 comprised of shops, loft condos and restaurants. There is a lot of new construction in Robbinsville and much more to come. When we moved to the area 26 years ago a drive to Robbinsville was a trip to the "country". There is still a lot of undeveloped farm land there.
Like other high performing school districts WW-P has a strong emphasis on academics but the district has good sports programs, the music dept. is extensive as is performing arts etc. What we have found is that most of the pressure comes from the parents.
Dear all,
thank you very, very much for your thoughtful and resourceful comments. Are there any blogs/links/websites that provide an on-the-ground feel for Robbinsville, NJ? We live in NYC and there are 5 local neighborhood blogs just for our area. Could you recommend something like that for Robbinsville, NJ?
Many thanks
In the last few days we heard some pretty negative things about Robbinsville from a family that moved from Robbinsville back to Princeton because they perceived the quality of the schools as inferior. These friends stated that the students in Robbinsville were 1-2 years behind same grade peers in Princeton and that Robbinsville was "all Indian."
Here is some part of the original statement: "Robbinsville is not a town or a community. It's a strip mall. There's nothing else to build on. The school system will put your kids 1-2 years behind. And as for diversity, it's heavily Indian. If you want only that, that's fine but it's not diverse in the way Princeton is, which has people from all cultures, demographics and walks of life and profession. It's also not a place where you can just let your kids roam around in town, because there is no town. Everything is a drive away. So if you want any culture or community you have to literally get in your car and drive 45 min for it."
Could anybody comment on that?
I am now a little confused about Robbinsville which looked so great on paper.
Many thanks!
In the last few days we heard some pretty negative things about Robbinsville from a family that moved from Robbinsville back to Princeton because they perceived the quality of the schools as inferior. These friends stated that the students in Robbinsville were 1-2 years behind same grade peers in Princeton and that Robbinsville was "all Indian."
Here is some part of the original statement: "Robbinsville is not a town or a community. It's a strip mall. There's nothing else to build on. The school system will put your kids 1-2 years behind. And as for diversity, it's heavily Indian. If you want only that, that's fine but it's not diverse in the way Princeton is, which has people from all cultures, demographics and walks of life and profession. It's also not a place where you can just let your kids roam around in town, because there is no town. Everything is a drive away. So if you want any culture or community you have to literally get in your car and drive 45 min for it."
Could anybody comment on that?
I am now a little confused about Robbinsville which looked so great on paper.
Many thanks!
It is a stripmall. It is still pretty rural, which is why it is one of few areas with a lot of new construction. As for the "all indian", according to nj school report card, that is clearly not true,
Robbinsville and Princeton are two completely different areas. Robbinsville is a relatively new area not completely developed, Princeton is an old established town with older housing (in town). Princeton is 72% caucasian according to the 2010 US Census.
Princeton has an old walkable downtown, Robbinsville has a new town center.
Princeton schools, historically rank in the the top ten in the State, Robbinsville schools in the top 60.
Princeton is a very nice town and offers a particular life style that is very popular to a lot of people. The real estate prices reflect the desirability of the area and the continued high performance of the school district.
You are the only one who can decide what is best for you and your family.
Thanks for all responses and the excellent links to the NJ school report cards. I had no idea that this info was publicly available.
I agree that the claim that Robbinsville is "all Indian" can not be substantiated.
I also get that Princeton and Robbinsville are two completely different communities at different price points: while Princeton is established and has nationally acclaimed schools and premium priced real estate, Robbinsville is a relatively recent development with a lot of new construction in the last 15 years. Robbinsville's schools are slightly above NJ state average (?) and a comparable house might cost half of what it would cost in Princeton.
thanks for your very valuable input! You have been of great help!
Robbinsvilleis a new up and coming town. I moved there from NYC 3 year ago. We were looking at West Windsor too. The school systems at WW/P is 40% Asian (Chinese/Indians mostly) Very strong academics. Too much so. It actually puts kids at a disadvantage. Harvard, Princeton, etc. can’t take every qualified student from WWP high school and there are plenty of them!!! Robbinsville schools are new and getting better all the time. It will be on par with WWP in the next 10 years. I don’t know if that is good or bad for the township.
Robbinsville does have a lot of Indians but the school system is much much more diverse than WWP. Classes are much more mixed so it seems. My kids are in Sharon School.There are a lot of Italians in Robbinsville as well.
“It's also not a place where you can just let your kids roam around in town, because there is no town. Everything is a drive away. So if youwant any culture or community you have to literally get in your car and drive45 min for it."
I don’t know what this means. I live in Town Center. I know all my surrounding neighbors and the kids roam around all they want. No issues.Robbinsville is full of kids. Lots of young families. Princeton Junctions has less of a town than Robbinsville. Princeton proper does have a nice University town but not a place for little kids to roam around. Robbinsville is also very close to 95 & 195 and all the shopping you want is 5 mins away. Plus you can totally avoid the dreaded RT1
The housing stock is Robbinsville is equally diverse. There are plenty of townhome in the $200-$300K range. 2000 – 4000 sq ft homes in the $500k-$700k range as well as very large million dollar homes (5000+ sq ft).What every you like.
The Robbinsville Mayor is also very good and proactive regarding the townships interests.
If you want true culture stay in NYC. This is the Mercer county.The deep burbs.
I commute to NYC every day. 1:45min to 2hr door to door to the east side of Manhattan. That is the best you will do time wise. The express train ride itself is 50min or 1 hr (from PJ or Hamilton). If you can’t get the express train add 30mins to your total trip times. The train ride is nice and relaxing. Great to catch up on TV shows or a book) Once you get to Penn…….we all know that mess!
All in all it’s a great town to raise a family.
Last edited by pjuran; 06-06-2016 at 11:58 AM..
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