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Old 08-09-2014, 01:05 PM
 
56 posts, read 93,093 times
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My family is looking to relocate to the area. My husband has a possible job offer. If he gets the job, it will be on Davis Drive in Cary/Mechanicsville. I have been researching the area for some time and visited Cary/Apex in May. Time and time again I have read or heard that the schools are fantastic in Chapel Hill, but Great Schools does not reflect that. I have 5 kids, 2 of whom have special needs so schools are very important to me. I met with the special Ed. Department for Wake County schools in May and was comfortable with their approach, but I do not wish to overlook a great option because Great Schools gives iffy numbers.

Tell me about the schools in Chapel Hill! I will have kids in 7th grade, 5th grade, 1st grade and preschool. Our housing budget is under $550k and we are looking for 5-6 bedrooms and around 4000 sq. feet. I love walking so I want to be in an area with parks and trails, and I want to be able to walk to a grocery store. I am mentioning these things because the schools could be great in Chapel Hill, but I would really pause if I couldn't buy the right size house that is walking distance from some ammienties.

Also, I have been reading this forum for some time and I am well aware of the growing pains in the area and that the schools are being stretched. I am looking for positive and constructive comments please. I am not looking to being talked out of coming to the area. I am looking for honest opinions since I can not personally be there to evaluate the schools.

Thanks!
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Old 08-09-2014, 04:23 PM
 
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Chapel Hill schools are great for high achieving students. For average students they can be a struggle at times. For students with an IEP they are often abysmal - at least in higher grades.
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Old 08-09-2014, 04:27 PM
 
Location: Chapel Hill, N.C.
36,499 posts, read 53,921,806 times
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5 or 6 bedroom, on your budget and walking distance to a grocery store is going to be difficult.
The schools in Chapel Hill/Carrboro are all top notch. Some buildings may be older or newer but I don't think that is what makes a school great. Parental involvement and community support is what has made our schools great. However schools across N.C. are suffering from teacher burn out and depression because of no raises in years and lack of appreciation from our current government.

For above average students and special needs students the education here is excellent. It is the average kid who is often overlooked. i told a teacher conference "God forbid anybody in Chapel Hill have an average kid".
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Old 08-09-2014, 04:57 PM
 
Location: Chapelboro
12,799 posts, read 16,270,376 times
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I wouldn't buy in Chapel Hill just for the schools. Schools are also excellent in Cary. If your husband will be working in Cary, buy in Cary. Only buy in Chapel Hill if you fall in love with the town. No reason to give yourself a commute.
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Old 08-09-2014, 05:11 PM
 
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I agree with everything Ch, Poppydog and Nokudzu have posted.
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Old 08-09-2014, 05:25 PM
 
Location: Research Triangle Area, NC
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Chapel Hill schools are all about turning their students to top-tier universities. They have amazing programs set in place; language-immersion starting in Kindergarten (in Spanish, or Chinese), every AP class you can think of in high school, and extra-curricular activities out the wazoo.

On the elementary school level, with which my line of work is the level I have the most familiarity, it is great that kids from all socio-economic backgrounds have the same opportunities and really do excel. I have heard, as others have said, that once you get into the middle and especially high-school levels; the playing field isn't quite as level and the de-facto segregation tends to pan out again. The same thing definitely happens in Wake though.

I agree that a commute from Chapel Hill to Cary would not be fun. I am temporarily doing the reverse commute; from Apex to Chapel Hill, and it is almost 40 minutes even though I am commuting earlier than rush hour in the morning and later than rush hour in the evening.

Having grown up in Wake and having my entire K-12 education in WCPSS; I personally wouldn't send my kids there because I hated how often neighborhoods got reassigned. Chapel Hill has a much more stable student population at most schools and the feeder schools rarely change because it is a smaller district. I was laughing last year when they build Northside elementary school and so many of the parents were up in arms over the amount of kids getting shuffled around from FPG and Carrboro to fill the new school up...that happens EVERY YEAR in Wake. But schools in western Wake generally are probably on par with those in Chapel Hill; with lower property taxes! I also agree with the above poster that Chapel Hill has more of a town/community feel than Cary does.


If your husband were working in Durham or RTP it would be an easy recommendation to say "buy in Chapel Hill"; but with that commute it doesn't seem necessary.
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Old 08-09-2014, 05:30 PM
 
Location: Containment Area for Relocated Yankees
1,054 posts, read 1,981,546 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TarHeelNick View Post
If your husband were working in Durham or RTP it would be an easy recommendation to say "buy in Chapel Hill"; but with that commute it doesn't seem necessary.
I would consider Davis Drive on the border of Cary/Morrisville to be RTP (I'm pretty sure the OP actually meant Morrisville, because Mechanicsville is in Virginia)
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Old 08-09-2014, 05:50 PM
 
Location: My House
34,937 posts, read 36,160,316 times
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On the Morrisville side of RTP, I'd choose West Cary over CH. Especially on the OP's budget and based on schools alone with no other desire to be in CH.
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Old 08-09-2014, 10:26 PM
 
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
9,767 posts, read 15,737,428 times
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Culbreth Middle School in Chapel Hill is AWFUL! We strongly dislike it there. I agree that average students get lost in the crowd. And administration at both the district level and school level (at Culbreth) are inflexible. Principal is a flake. We have been quite unhappy. We are looking to get out of the situation by going private, homeschooling or moving. I truly believe the education at CH schools are more hype and less "meat." I haven't been impressed. There are some exceptions of course (some great teachers, small class size), but I expected to love the small district and high quality curriculum. Instead, we were met with very basic math courses, administration who won't change a thing based on parent compaints, a lot of teacher movement, and a high % of low-performing students mixed in with the general ed crowd that bring down higher-performing kids.
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Old 08-09-2014, 11:10 PM
 
56 posts, read 93,093 times
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Thanks everyone! When we visited, we really liked Apex. I started to second guess myself when the HR lady told my husband to look into Chapel Hill. I think I will stop second guessing myself and Will keep learning abut Apex and Cary.

Oh, and yes, I meant Morrrisville. We were looking into VA for a while and I guess I confused the two places.
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