They all sound good...

[krusklan]

Originally Posted by hug631

I have nocited that everyone moving to NC are very happy to move. All of the families out there, the ones with CHILDREN, are you guys concerned a little bit about schooling? are guys doing the research on this? am I missing something here? Do we have more single people or couples with no children moving to NC? As far as I understand (at least from this forum) schools suck in NC
I am getting so discourage to move just by reading all the posts about this...

HI there, I see that you are from long island . I moved here in July from LOng Island and I just wanted to let you know that my kids are more challenged here with the schools than on long island. They go to apex schools as well. They actually have to put in more time and effort here than they did at home. So as far as Apex , I tried to do my homework before moving and I am not disappointed in my childrens education at all !!, HOWEVER... with the mandatory year round school issue, that is another story !! .

[krusklan]

Originally Posted by a1m1700

Better not head to Gilbert then. If you don't fit in in Apex we won't fit in in Gilbert.

I am in Apex and I have actually been complemented on my Tattoo and my husband has them also. I don't go to church and I am not condemned here so try not to get too caught up with one incident ..I have great neighbors and friends. There are judgemental people everywhere !!!!!!!!!

[krusklan]

Originally Posted by mmdj43

With that said, then why is it that nearly 95% of people I speak with said that they would never go back? I don't think they would really say that if they were really home sick.

I moved in July and I am homesick for my friends and family in NY , not NY itself . But I can definitely say that My family life is a better one here with my 4 children, then it was on long Island . No more second jobs for my hubby just to keep us from going under and FINALLY some quality family time together without that second job !So you can add me to the 95% of people that wont go back !

[raleighhomes]

The school system is rated one of the top in the nation. Schools are constantly being built to make more room for all of the new children. Every large city has overgrowth problems in schools and deal with it. go to www.wcpss.net and do your research on the schools by checking the testing results. Moderator cut: Removed

[NCTarheel07]

I grew up in Michigan, and I have recently moved to NC. I go to school, and Id like to say there is a lot of flaws with the school system in NC

For 1, standardized testing is the main thing, and it seems like the only thing

students have to take EOC (end of course testing) in most courses. The curriculum is centered entirely around what the state puts on the EOC.

second: most classes are only 1 semister long. geometry, algebra, and the sciences are also 1 semister. They cram too much together, and they dont learn half of the stuff that is in the book. When I lived in michigan, we went through almost the entire geometry book, etc. Down in NC, they have to rush, and only cover things that are on the EOC tests. I dont know of any other state that only has semister long math and science classes. geometery, algebra, etc should be year long courses like they are in most of america.

Spanish and foriegn languages are also only 1 semister long in the high schools too, and only about over 1/2 of the actuall stuff you are supposed to learn on your level of spanish gets covered. If your planning on doing something in foriegn language, dont come to NC and go to school, go somewhere where you actually learn the curriculum.

Also the curches, it is very true. If your not going to church, they think you shouldent be in society. also, god is mentioned in the schools. In michigan, if you mentioned god, you were fired and you would be torn apart by the news media.

1 more thing, is that drivers education is free here in public schools , which has its advantages and disadvantages. for 1, parents dont have to dish out 300 some dollars to have their kids take drivers ed in school. and if you drop out, you loose your license.

the bad thing, is the road is full of 15 year old kids who dont know how to drive, and should not be on the road

I live in a VERY rural place about 1 hour east of raliegh. Dont come here, to get educated, you will end up so far behind the rest of society.

If you are comming to NC for school, Id suggest the raliegh-durham area. cary and apex are very nice places and they are more like "northern" style cities.

Other than that, I enjoy living in NC, but the government, the school boards and the leaders down here dont have a clue as to how to run things.

[Girl]

LONG thread - I only read bits and pieces (forgive me if I repeat anything others have said).

I research LONG AND HARD before picking Fort Mill, SC as the place my family would move to from New Jersey. Education being the #1 priority since I knew that with this move we'd be in it for the long haul until the kids go to college. I went to seven different schools as I grew up because my family moved a lot (Navy father). I do NOT want that to happen to my kids (while I enjoyed it, my sister HATED it (she went to THREE high schools in four years due to moves and was VERY lonely during that time)). Fort Mill, SC has great schools and motivated teachers, and I hope it continues that way as my children go through the school system here.

As for being welcomed warmly, we most certainly have been. Our neighbors are very friendly, we have found a church that feels like a home, and our kids are making friends at daycare (they are preschool aged at this point). Playdates have been scheduled with other parents in order to promote friendships not just for the kids but for the adults as well.

My nosering has been asked about by some (how long I've had it (14 years), why I got it (why not?), etc.) and completely ignored by others. The curious ones don't mean their questions to cause offense, and I don't take it.

The company I work for in Charlotte is fabulous and one of the best work environments I've ever been in. I have been here since August and have not had a single bad day in all my time here thusfar. My boss is fabulous and I don't think I'll quit until he retires.

My husband has been trying to decide what he wants to do for a living because the possibilities are endless. Right now he's doing what he did in NoNJ, but is contemplating a career change. And right now is the time to do it since we can afford to live on my salary and the hefty savings account that was created when we sold our NoNJ house. He's a bit lonely since he left all his friends in NYC/NoNJ, but excited about the possibilties down here.

So I'm one that thinks that your experience is what you make of it. I could have moved down here and been horribly sad about leaving our life in NoNJ (great neighbors, fantastic church, decent job, cute house, lots of friends). But I'm not. I'm thrilled because it seems as though we'll have all of that down here as well - but with southern accents!!

[brichard]

Originally Posted by Girl

As for being welcomed warmly, we most certainly have been. Our neighbors are very friendly, we have found a church that feels like a home,

I'm getting the feeling that your post may represent what it takes to fit in in NC: you have found a church. The original poster in this thread stated they are from Oregon and did not fit in in NC because they don't go to church. That person also said that people have suggested they would get more work in NC if they started going to church, and that people have diassociated with them because they do not attend a church. Back when I was living in NC, I did attend church, which may be why I fit in there. But my life and beliefs have changed dramatically since then. I went through years of deep and honest self analysis and evaluation, trying to understand what I believed and why. And trying to understand why societies have religion in the first place. In the end, I was no longer able to accept the things I had so fervently believed in the past and feel hypocritical even being in a church. Last week, some friends were visiting here from NC. Every time we had a meal (and this was in public places), they insisted on praying. And every prayer was "in Jesus's name"). No of them bothered to ask whether I was a Christian, or if I'm a Jew or a Muslim or Hindu or agnostic or anything else. No consideration as to whether I might be offended by these prayers. And whenever I'm visiting with people in NC, it seems one of the first questions asked is "where do you go to church?" So what if the answer is, I don't go to church and don't intend to? Do I get ostracized there? That's the feeling I get there, that it's unthinkable not to conform to those standards. I have been living in live-and-let-live places since I left NC and fear if I go back I won't be allowed to be my own person.