Suburbs of Pittsburgh (York, Bethel Park, Mount Lebanon: 2009, chapel, new home)

[SunshinePam]

Can anyone suggest the top rated public school districts around Pittsburgh? Possibly within 30-40 minute commutes into downtown? My family is contemplating a move from Western New York and I am curious as to where I should do preliminary house hunting. My son is only 3 at this moment so he would spend his entire schooling in whatever district we settle in. Suggestions? Housing searches would probably land us in between and around $200k to $300k.

Also, any suggestions on resources online to find technical jobs? I've searched Monster obviously and the Post-Gazette online. Any other suggestions for software developers mid-career?

[Kate88]

As far as school districts, my recommendations would be:

Mount Lebanon School District, which serves Mount Lebanon, and is about a 15-20 minute drive south of downtown.

Fox Chapel School District, which serves Aspinwall, Blawnox, Fox Chapel, and Sharpsburg boroughs, and Indiana and O'Hara townships, and isabout a 20-25 minute drive north-east of downtown.

Quaker Valley School District, which serves Aleppo Township, Bell Acres Borough, Edgeworth Borough, Glenfield Borough, Haysville Borough, Leet Township, Leetsdale Borough, Osbourne Borough, Sewickley Borough, Sewickley Heights Borough, and Sewickley Hills Borough, and is about a 25-30 minute drive north-west of downtown.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by Kate88

Fox Chapel School District, which serves Aspinwall, Blawnox, Fox Chapel, and Sharpsburg boroughs, and Indiana and O'Hara townships, and isabout a 20-25 minute drive north-east of downtown.

For the north, Hampton is FAR more superior to Fox Chapel in most aspects.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by SunshinePam

Also, any suggestions on resources online to find technical jobs? I've searched Monster obviously and the Post-Gazette online. Any other suggestions for software developers mid-career?

Indeed dot com pulls advertisements from multiple sources. There's quite a few listings for software developers right now: All Software Developer Jobs in Pittsburgh, PA | Indeed.com You can set your preferences so it notifies you of any ads that meet your criteria.

As for other suggestions, find a head hunter specializing in software development and contact an international and a local professional organization.

[Hopes]

These might be some relevant Pittsburgh associations:

Pittsburgh Chapter of ISSA - Monthly Meeting

User Groups - Pittsburgh Tech Council

Pittsburgh PMI - Pittsburgh's chapter of the Project Management Institute


Also look for relevant conferences and conventions held in Pittsburgh to attend.

I found the 49th Annual IACIS Fall Conference will be held in Pittsburgh on September 30 - October 3, 2009.

International Association for Computer Information Systems

I'm sure there are others you can find too.

Pittsburgh Chapter of Society for Technical Communication

[Tinare]

I would add Upper Saint Clair to the list as well. Always highly ranked.

[lifepgh2op]

Here is a link to the ratings for the entire state (if you're not familiar with the area... Allegheny County is the county Pittsburgh is in...and you can run about 30-40 minute commutes from parts of Westmoreland, Beaver, Butler, Washington counties.)
http://www.svsd.net/important-news/i..._rank_2008.pdf

Suburb schools that ranked high (in order) that would be about a 45 minute drive or less were:
Upper St. Clair, Mt. Lebanon, Hampton Township, North Allegheny, Peters Township, Fox Chapel, South Fayette, Franklin Regional, Pine-Richland, Quaker Valley, Bethel Park, Norwin, West Jefferson Hills, Penn-Trafford, North Hills, Seneca Valley

[PetersTownshipRocks]

Originally Posted by SunshinePam

Can anyone suggest the top rated public school districts around Pittsburgh? Possibly within 30-40 minute commutes into downtown? My family is contemplating a move from Western New York and I am curious as to where I should do preliminary house hunting. My son is only 3 at this moment so he would spend his entire schooling in whatever district we settle in. Suggestions? Housing searches would probably land us in between and around $200k to $300k.

Also, any suggestions on resources online to find technical jobs? I've searched Monster obviously and the Post-Gazette online. Any other suggestions for software developers mid-career?

I'd suggest Peter's Township. Washington County taxes with better schools. USC is "nice" but the houses are older, the lots are smaller and if you are not from there - good luck fitting in. Mt. Lebanon - Friendlier people, but the lots are tiny and the houses are small. Plus it's very close to the city which is great for the commute, but more of a city attitude. If that is what you are going for - than I'd say Mt. Lebanon.

Peter's Township has nicer houses, bigger lots, less expensive taxes, better roads, and the school system is tops. The houses here are so big & fancy and the yards are so gorgeous & large, good luck in finding much for less than 400K! It's "the" place to live now in the South Hills. 600K and more is what most new homes are going for. I know of several homes that were listed in the 500K's and there were bidding wars over them. This is a very safe area and very welcoming to newcomers. It's also where a lot of people live who 'used' to live in Upper Saint Clair and Mt. Lebanon have moved. Mostly because they were either moving 'up' or wanting more land and a nicer house.

[pwpjn]

I live in Peters Twp. You CAN find houses here for under $400,000. Honestly, there is not much land in Peters remaining, so developers are building $500,000+ houses on lots that have "over half an acre", but the backyards are either a cliff or an uphill slope. Some of the older neighborhoods with less impressive houses have much better lots.

My son will just be entering Kindergarten this fall, so I have no experience with the school district, other than what people say about it. And, there are the state rankings, which Peters Twp is 9th out of 501 school districts. There is just about every sport imaginable for the kids to play. The Peters Twp public library is great and has won awards. Peters is convenient to just about everything, but it also has sort of a country feel due to several area farms and it being in Washington County. The only thing I could complain about is that Peters is not super-close to the interstate, but it is less than 10 minutes to get to it.

Do I think Peters Twp is an idyllic utopia? No. In fact, there is very little diversity here. I'd say more than 90% of the families with school-aged children are upper-middle class or upper class, white-collar professionals. (I would think Upper St. Clair is close to this firgure, too.) Sometimes I wish we would have considered looking into Canon-McMillan School District, which is right next to Peters. There is a lot more diversity there and you can get more house and land for your money. Plus, Canonsburg and Cecil are much closer to the highway.

Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by PetersTownshipRocks

It's also where a lot of people live who 'used' to live in Upper Saint Clair and Mt. Lebanon have moved. Mostly because they were either moving 'up' or wanting more land and a nicer house.

Everyone I know who moved for lower taxes. That was their only reason. Period.