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my husband and I with 2 children - ages 10 and newborn plan on moving to Rockland county. it is perfect for commuting to work for both of us. We are not from the area so i have alot of questions pertaining to my children. We have heard good things about the schools in several areas. I am looking for an area that really focuses on sports and extracurricular activities and has a neighborly feel. I don't care about a walkable town center or nearby trains. I am okay with a larger school and prefer a more diverse demographic. What is the opinion of Pearl River Vs. Nanuet Vs. West Nyack for a young family? Thank you in advance
Since you are not from the area you should first realize that in suburban NY, you browse for housing by comparing school districts. The school district will define the experience you and your children have, the ability of your house to maintain and grow in value, and the real estate taxes you will pay. In essence, it defines the community you will be living in.
This is important because their are some Pearl River houses that are in the Nanuet SD, and some Nanuet houses that are in the PRSD. As for West Nyack, the bulk are in the Clarkstown SD, but some are in PRSD, and some are in Nanuet SD. Also, many houses in Orangeburg are in PRSD, while a small amount of Nanuet houses may be in the East Ramapo SD, which is one to avoid. So you need to identify SDs first.
Since you are asking about PR, Nanuet and West Nyack, I will answer as to PRSD, Nanuet SD, and CSD. PR will give you the most neighborly feel, and its a strong community for sports (more so than non-sport activities). Its what I would call a single community/single HS district, where everyone self-identifies as living in PR, and everyone feels a part of the same community. Nanuet neighbors PR to the north and is very similar - kind of like a PR-light. Its a bit smaller, a bit less affluent, and the schools are a bit less regarded - most of this is due to recent trends and I think its trending in this direction as well. Clarkstown SD is very much the opposite of these two. Its a large, regional school district covering a much larger area. There are two AA size High Schools, each of which is larger than the single HS in PR and Nanuet. This gives you an idea of the relevant sizes. CSD has only one MS, which is massive, and this is a turn off for some. It has many small elementary schools. All of this means it has less of a community feel to it. Its also not as strong for youth and HS sports, but is probably stronger for non-sports activities.
As for a diverse demographic, none of these 3 districts will give you much, but of the group, PR would be the least diverse, not only ethnically, but religiously and economically as well. Its almost exclusively Catholic (more Irish than others), SF homes with 2 parents, and is very uniformly well-to-do without being lower-westchester affluent. Nanuet has a bit more diversity, both in terms of ethnicity and religion, and is a bit more diverse economically. CSD has a lot of secular Jews, but due to its size, a lot of everything as well. It isn't ethnically diverse, but being much bigger than PR, it will have more diversity in terms of raw numbers, and since it covers a very wide area, it will have more economic diversity.
Overall, if you want the big school, regional thing with an outsized amount of secular jews, CSD would be the place. If you want a smaller district with a more community feel, a greater emphasis on athletics, and don't mind it being all white collar/NYPD/FDNY Catholic than PR is the choice. Both districts score very high on testing, and have near 100% grad and college attendance rates. Your splitting hairs in terms of the quality of the students and education. Nanuet is the same as PR, but just not as good (and not as future-proof in my opinion), but if more diversity is very important, than it would be your pick over PR, since Nanuet is still a good district. Also, you might want to also look at the South Orangetown SD if you are looking at these areas. One can argue that SO is a mix of all of what is good about PR, Nanuet and Clarkstown, while others may see it as not doing anything as well as the other 3. If you are not from the area, and therefore lack local biases, than you need to add SOSD to the other three when vetting local districts.
Good schools and a diverse demographic......I'd say New City and parts of Congers and West Nyack in the Clarkstown Central SD and maybe parts of Nyack/South Nyack and Central Nyack in the Nyack Union Free SD. I believe that parts of the Nanuet and South Orangetown SD's may work as well.
I hope this helps and you can click on the green tabs and it shows demographics on the block level. Meaning you can get a pretty decent idea of demographics on a block/street level as well.
thank you so much 987ABC. which towns go to SOSD? also what is your take on Congers and Valley Cottage?
South Orangetown SD is located in the southeast corner of Rockland bordering on PRSD and Nyack SD. It encompasses most of Orangeburg, as well as Blauvelt, Tappan, Sparkill, Piermont, Palisades, Grandview, and maybe parts of some other areas. And these are not "towns". They are hamlets or villages. The entire SOSD lies within the Town of Orangetown, as does the entire PRSD.
Valley Cottage is mostly in the Nyack SD. Congers in in Clarkstown SD.
Nyack SD is far more diverse than Clarkstown SD. Valley Cottage is the more suburban part of the Nyack SD. The Village of Nyack is more urban and has more high density housing and small lot properties. More of a walking city-like environment. Congers and Valley Cottage are right next to each other, and are very similar to each other, but because they are in very different school districts, your experiences living in one vs the other will be different. Chose a home based on SD more than anything else.
Good schools and a diverse demographic......I'd say New City and parts of Congers and West Nyack in the Clarkstown Central SD and maybe parts of Nyack/South Nyack and Central Nyack in the Nyack Union Free SD. I believe that parts of the Nanuet and South Orangetown SD's may work as well.
I hope this helps and you can click on the green tabs and it shows demographics on the block level. Meaning you can get a pretty decent idea of demographics on a block/street level as well.
The Nyack SD is much more diverse than Clarkstown SD, South Orangetown SD or Nanuet SD. By a wide margin.
Are congers and valley cottage into sports? Are they has community oriented like pearl river?
Kids in Congers and Valley Cottage play organized sports as much as anywhere else I guess. If you have specific sports in mind I might be able to help more. Remember, when comparing Congers, Valley Cottage and Pearl River, the real question is: Do I want my kids going to school in Clarkstown, Nyack, or Pearl River. I think PR is the more community oriented of the three, but its a hard metric to pin down. Pearl River is nicer (slightly more affluent, cleaner, more nearby and nicer shopping) but its really the schools you should be picking. Nyack schools are much more diverse than the other 2, and its base of families will be more liberal and artsy. Clarkstown is a much bigger district than the other 2 and is more regional - a combination of multiple communities that are each different. Clarkstown probably isn't much more racially diverse than PR, but its more religiously diverse.
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congers? ?
