Best schools and places to live in OK City and surrounding suburbs? (Oklahoma City: renting, homes) - City-Data Forum

Teaching123abc · 08-21-2011, 04:53 PM

Hello,

In 2 years, my husband and I will need to relocate to the Oklahoma City area. We are looking for a suburb that has a rather high standard of living and prestigious elementary schools. Are there any specific areas you would recommend? Any information would be greatly appreciated!

debzkidz · 08-22-2011, 07:53 AM

A lot of where you end up will depend on what your budget is, and what part of town you will be working in.

If you want to be in the city, I would look at Nichols Hills, which is actually a small little town, in the middle of OKC. Very upscale area. Lots of money. They have an elementary school there which I believe is suppose to be good, but I personally don't know much about. My kids were in high school when we moved to OKC. I think after elementary, it would require private schooling. There is also the Heritage Hills area, just north of downtown. Beautiful old historic mansions, but as for schooling, I think it would have be private.

As for suburban areas, Edmond is considered to be one of the nicest areas of town by many. Excellent schools. Lovely neighborhoods. Nice people. It's considered by many to be snobby and overpriced, but I've not found it to be snobby in the least. I live in Edmond and really like it here. We chose it because it felt the most like where we were moving from and because the schools were the best rated in the area. The eastern side of the town, along I-35 is somewhat wooded and a bit hilly. Lots of shopping in the area, which we really liked. We also chose this area of town because of the quick and easy access to I-35. The more western sides of town is a bit more flat, with a little less trees, and depending on where you will be working, a bit more of a commute.

Also in the area of southeast Edmond/northeast OKC is a very nice area called Oakdale. Oakdale has it's own school for elementary through junior high, then they attend Edmond high schools. I believe the school is suppose to be very good. It is a hilly, wooded area with many large beautiful homes. The subdivisions in the area (or at least all the ones I've been in) have larger than average wooded lots. It's really lovely there. It's also only about 15 minute to downtown. The only drawback to this area for me is the distance to the nearest shopping and the high school. It's not far, but it was too far for us.

You could also check out the Deer Creek area. It is really the western side of Edmond/northwest OKC. Some of the homes have Edmond addresses, some have OKC. There are some very nice neighorhoods and the schools are suppose to be good, but it's a much smaller district. There are some very nice subdivisions in the area in varying price ranges. It's a bit more rural, still some farm land out there. It is not a far out, however. You can be at Quail Springs Mall, Super Target, and and most any other store or restaurant you might want in a matter of about 10 minutes.

Norman is nice as well. I cannot speak specifically about it. I've been there, but its usually been to attend an event on the OU campus, or to go to a specific business for some reason. I have not spent time driving through neighborhoods, but just passing through town I have seen many very nice ones. I believe the schools there are suppose to be very good as well.

Good luck in your search.

picklejuice · 08-22-2011, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teaching123abc

Hello,

In 2 years, my husband and I will need to relocate to the Oklahoma City area. We are looking for a suburb that has a rather high standard of living and prestigious elementary schools. Are there any specific areas you would recommend? Any information would be greatly appreciated!

Moore is the most coveted school district there. Stay away from Midwest City, Dell, and Choctaw.

mbahopeful · 08-26-2011, 12:41 PM

I think it depends on what area you want to live in. Moore is a good district, but I would say that in general it is not seen as being quite as "prestigious" as Edmond/Deer Creek is. Just my experience.
Edmond by and large has very good schools and by next year will have 100% of the schools offering full-day kindergarten, which is very nice. It is an extremely family-friendly area with tons of great offerings for families with kids.
We live in the Oakdale district mentioned above, which I personally feel, and the data shows this, is really one of the best schools and situations. Oakdale is a small k-8 school that is also it's own district. It has the definite feel of a private school but it is public. It's small (~600 students) and at the elementary level there are 3 classes per grade. Everyone knows everyone and it very much has a community feel. I don't know anyone in my neighborhood who has school-aged kids who sends them to a private school (well I did just meet one, but she chose a Catholic school for religious reasons). It isn't "in-town" Edmond, but we are still considered part of Edmond. It is a slight pain to have to go a few minutes farther to shop and such, but really it is like 5 minutes more. There is a lot of development and building going on along I-35 as well that is helping in terms of conveniences. But really it doesn't bother me to drive most places, the tradeoff IMO is worth it. I have 2 kids at Oakdale and so far have been extremely pleased with the opportunities, educational quality, and community.
The Oakdale area is also well-located right at I-35 for commuting. It's the primary reason we built our home here because of my husband's job- he needed to be close to 35 for work but we wanted to be in Edmond. This is about as far south/east as you can get but still be in Edmond.

#1soonerfan · 08-27-2011, 02:34 PM

My aunt and uncle recently moved to Moore from Edmond due to my uncle's new job in Norman. So far they have found Moore schools to be "okay" but in their views its a definite downgrade from what they had in Edmond. They are renting currently and thinking about moving to Norman for the schools. Just my take. It is an otherwise great town for raising families.

Edmond, Norman, and Deer Creek have always had the best reputation as far as schools are concerned.

Teaching123abc · 08-29-2011, 03:55 PM

Thank you all so much. I really appreciate your thorough responses. It certainly gives me some areas to think about. It looks like Edmond and the surrounding areas are the way to go. :-)

happytown · 08-31-2011, 05:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teaching123abc

Hello,

In 2 years, my husband and I will need to relocate to the Oklahoma City area. We are looking for a suburb that has a rather high standard of living and prestigious elementary schools. Are there any specific areas you would recommend? Any information would be greatly appreciated!

Rather high standard of living and prestigious schools= Living in Nichols Hills and sending your kids to Casady.

Boxcar Overkill · 08-31-2011, 12:18 PM

Norman, Moore, Edmond/Deer Creek are the traditional answers. All have great public schools.

Edmond is a great town with great schools, a little stepford-wives-ish, but still pretty awesome.
Norman is a great town with great schools, but it gets really crazy with the college students everywhere.
We choose Moore because we wanted to live near Norman, but not in Norman. We can get to an OU game or see live music in just 15 minutes or so, but we don't have to live in that circus.

You really can't go wrong with any of the three towns. See which one works for you.

LRGirl · 09-10-2011, 09:02 PM

I moved to OKC from another, much prettier/nicer Southern city three years ago. While the eastern part of Edmond is probably the prettiest area to live, I find many of the women in Edmond to be extremely Stepford wives-ish and snobby for no reason. In fact many seem pretty vapid. In fact just came from a party tonight in Edmond where I told my husband as much. The western part of Edmond is flat with few trees and new housing developments look barren. Not the case on the eastern part. Putnam City public schools in OKC are still pretty good but I wouldn't go with OKC public. I really like parts of NW OKC. Moore and Norman I've not been much impressed with either. Nichols Hills, Lakehurst and Quail Creek are also very nice areas. Deer Creek is flat and pretty barren in my opinion. Definitely stay away from Del City, Midwest City and Yukon.

n8tiv_okie · 09-12-2011, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LRGirl

I moved to OKC from another, much prettier/nicer Southern city three years ago. While the eastern part of Edmond is probably the prettiest area to live, I find many of the women in Edmond to be extremely Stepford wives-ish and snobby for no reason. In fact many seem pretty vapid. In fact just came from a party tonight in Edmond where I told my husband as much. The western part of Edmond is flat with few trees and new housing developments look barren. Not the case on the eastern part. Putnam City public schools in OKC are still pretty good but I wouldn't go with OKC public. I really like parts of NW OKC. Moore and Norman I've not been much impressed with either. Nichols Hills, Lakehurst and Quail Creek are also very nice areas. Deer Creek is flat and pretty barren in my opinion. Definitely stay away from Del City, Midwest City and Yukon.

I have no clue how you could lump Yukon in with Del City and Midwest City.
Yukon has one of the best school districts in the state for education and sports.
I do agree, however, with your opinion on Edmond. I know of many non-Edmond-ites who share this view, and honestly, it's true.