Ross Township vs McCandless / Shaler / Hampton? (Pittsburgh, Shaler Township: credit, houses, neighborhood)

[bridgeman]

Hello my wife and I are looking to buy a home in the North suburbs. Both of us work me (FT) my wife (PT) and want relatively short commute into Station Square and Oakland where the jobs are. We also have 2 young children and are very interested in school system. The house that we are looking at would go to Ross Elemantary school (any thoughts) esp compared to ones in other townships?

It seems that you can get nicer houses further out but then the commute is longer. I'd like to hit the optimum of a short commute and good schools.

Also, are there any bike trails from Ross to the city (I couldn't find any) or are there any planned? Anyone do bike commuting from the North?

[robrobrob]

Hampton and North Allegheny are better school districts than North Hills and Shaler. The commute to town from Hampton isn't that great because you hit Route 8 and Route 28. North Allegheny is a massive school district. I know people who bike in from Fox Chapel/O'hara Twp. by going through Lawrenceville.

[Hopes]

For the OP,

Ross Township is the North Hills School District. (Other boros are included too)

McCandless Township is in the North Allegheny School District. (Many other boros and townships are included too)

Hampton Township is Hampton School District.

Shaler Township, Reserve Township, Etna & Millvale are Shaler Area School District.

Originally Posted by robrobrob

Hampton and North Allegheny are better school districts than North Hills and Shaler. The commute to town from Hampton isn't that great because you hit Route 8 and Route 28. North Allegheny is a massive school district. I know people who bike in from Fox Chapel/O'hara Twp. by going through Lawrenceville.

That's not true. It's such a shame that people fall for neighborhood asthetics and assume the schools are better.

North Hills ranks higher than North Allegheny! North Hills ranks 7th in the county. North Allegheny ranks 13th. Statewide, North Hills ranks 55th and North Allegheny ranks 100th out of 693 high schools in the state. As for Elementary Schools, Ross Elementary ranks 3rd in the county and 42nd in the state out of 1811 elementary schools in the state.

I'm not saying that North Allegheny is a bad school district, but I think it's important to give North Hills credit where it's due.

Shaler isn't a bad school district. It just has a percentage of students from more impoverished districts that pull down its test scores. 25 or so years ago, Reserve Township, Millvale and Etna were merged into Shaler Township's school district to form what is now called Shaler Area School District. You can find larger houses in Shaler because it's still being developed. There's still wooded areas and farm areas being developed. Ross Township was fully developed a long time ago---that's why the houses are smaller in Ross Township.

Shaler is the most conveniently located township for commuting to Oakland. North Hills is the most convenient for commuting to Station Square. BUT Shaler does have a bike path from Millvale all the way into downtown. It runs along side the Allegheny River and River Road. So Shaler would be the best option for commuting for both spouses if the person going to Station Square plans to ride a bike.

If you're chosing convenience, Shaler is the choice---hands down.

If you're chosing schools AND convenience, North Hills in the choice.

But I still believe Shaler is a decent school district.

[bridgeman]

Thank you for the insightful analysis. I really appreciate it. I have tried to look up the information on PSSA score on Google and found several sites but none that ranks the schools as clearly as you describe. What website is best to get this school information like #3 elementary school in Allegheny County?

[robrobrob]

Check out the Pittsburgh Business times rankings. They are different than the rankings that Hopes cites. Here is the link.

http://www.svsd.net/important-news/i..._rank_2008.pdf

Also, as Hopes points out the bike trail goes to Millvale, which is part of the Shaler Area School District, and not to Shaler Township.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by bridgeman

Thank you for the insightful analysis. I really appreciate it. I have tried to look up the information on PSSA score on Google and found several sites but none that ranks the schools as clearly as you describe. What website is best to get this school information like #3 elementary school in Allegheny County?

Ranking of Elementary Schools in Allegheny County

Ranking of Elementary Schools in Pennsylvania

Ranking of High Schools in Allegheny County

Ranking of High Schools in Pennsylvania

Originally Posted by robrobrob

Also, as Hopes points out the bike trail goes to Millvale, which is part of the Shaler Area School District, and not to Shaler Township.

That's splitting hairs. It's the only school district with a bike trail into Pittsburgh. That's all that matters when it comes to bike trails and suburban townships. If the man likes riding a bike, he doesn't need to live next to the bike trail to use it. He can ride his bike to the bike trail, or he can drive his car and then ride his bike.