Can you please tell me about the two Corvallis high schools? (Talent: buy, construction)

[heavens54]

We will be relocating to the area before the school year starts. I know of the two high schools in Corvallis. My son will be a junior. How to pick which school???



Thanks for your time.

[jjpop]

Hi heavens. Your question has been sitting for a couple of days, so I thought I'd take a stab at it. My kids aren't at high school level yet, so I'm not speaking with much experience, but we are involved in school at the elementary level.

I think both schools are considered good. Corvallis High is newer (just completed construction in 2005 or 2006), and the facilities are very nice. Crescent Valley is a little ways out of town, but depending on where you live it may be a better choice for your son from a commute and parking standpoint.

I hope I don't offend any Raiders, but I get the impression that Corvallis High is the choice for the more academically inclined.

Please take all this with a huge grain of salt, because I don't totally know what I'm talking about. Perhaps you can do a little web searching and find more conclusive answers to your questions.

[heavens54]

In my little bit of research I have found out the same. Corvallis High seems to be the high school for us. Thanks for your input...

[LuciaIos]

Hi,

I've recently begun researching Corvallis myself and am confused about the high schools. This post suggests that Corvalllis High is the school that attracts the more academically inclined, yet school digger and great schools both rank Cresent Valley High as higher. Can someone tell us more about the difference in the schools and the type of people that attend. Do more OSU families go to one over the other? Anyone know where the gradutates of the high schools go.....in other words, is there a trend that grad.s from one school tend to gravitate towards certain colleges? What are the personalities of the two schools. Who do you recommend I seek out to speak with when I visit in person and what are the questions I should ask?

thanks!!
----lucia

[tablemtn]

CV is known as the 'rich kid's' school. All the same, Corvallis High is pretty good. Corvallis public schools in general are good.

[pparents]

I've got kids at Crescent Valley High School, but researched both quite carefully before going there, and my daughter's 3 best friends all go to Corvallis High.

Both schools are outstanding! Can't lose with either of them... and Both are academically strong...I don't think one could/would beat the other in an overall comparison....but they are quite different

Crescent Valley is north of town on a campus that looks like a community college, with large playing fields and open campus. They have no bells to move the kids between classes, and it has a very collegial feel. The culture is very positive, and strongly academic. It excels in the Sciences and Engineering disciplines, with strong English and Math as well. The orchestra is housed here, and the art department has an amazing photography, graphic design and fine arts strengths. Students are from the very wealthy areas of town, the nW suburbs and rural "poor", making for an interesting mix of folks. Many students take AP courses, and huge percentage are rated as Talented and gifted. CV has a new principal from 2 years ago, and she has made a huge difference at the school! Teachers are happy, students are happy, and lots of positive improvement is going on, (this wasn't the case 3 years ago, and is why the reputation WAS (not is) not as good as Corvallis High.

Corvallis high school is a new building that is very compact, with very limited playing fields, in the center of town. It is the larger of the two schools. It feels more like a "traditional" high school. It is perhaps stronger than CV (marginally so) in languages and social studies. It has more students, and therefore more electives and class offerings, making it a bit easier to coordinate a good schedule. It definitely has the stronger Drama department. Corvallis high has the shop programs-- auto, wood etc... for pre- trade preparation. The student body is a more representative cross section of the Corvallis population at all levels.. but in culture not much different than CV. They will be getting a new principal this fall 07, so I'm not sure what that will bring.

Strengths in sports are very different between the two schools, so if you are looking to be on a championship team, check your particular sport out before you buy your house.

Our kids are hoping to be top tier college bound, and we've found that CV has very high emphasis and strength in college and AP preparation, and their placement of kids in top national students is very high...I think Corvallis lags just a little bit...

you can't go wrong with either one.

I would suggest meeting with the principal of each school when you visit, they'll have the best way to show you their school.

[heavens54]

Thanks so much for all of the info. Looks like we have some work ahead of us to figure out which school would be best for him. They both sound great. Not too bad to have two wonderful options. Thanks so much for your time for this post...

[tablemtn]

Among locals, there is a slight preference for CV High. But really, you should also take distance into account. If one school is very much closer than the other, then go there. Also, Corvallis High is closer to Oregon State University, which has its advantages.

[heavens54]

So as not to get confused, CV is Crescent and Corvallis High is the other high school?

Why is CV considered the more elite if the other one is closer to the university? Doesn't make sense to me...

[tablemtn]

Because the wealthiest people in Corvallis live in the hilly areas north of town. This is part of CV's district.