Can somebody "describe" both Tiverton and Barrington ?

[jakedog1]

Well since no one else will say it I feel compelled to add that Barrington is snobby very very snobby. ( and preppy and white collar)Home to the RI country club and progolfer Brad Faxon- many executives for the major firms in RI who do not choose to live on the East Side choose Barrington. There has also been what can only now be described as a series of untimely deaths of teen boys in the area- a high parental tolerance to underaged drinking (and old boys will be boys mentality) has led one of the best school systems to experience a tragic series of losses. As far as quaint- RI has quite a few quaint towns but I wouldn't consider either of these to meet that qualification - they are both fairly decentralized. They are both decent places to live and you will have no problem finding a lovely home for $750K

[zombiemommie]

Are there any other areas that are coastal, within a 30 minute commute to Fall River, that have great school systems ?

[jakedog1]

Portsmouth- but that is also decentralized. Westport (MA) is nice but I have no idea what the schools are like..Bristol is quaint (town green, walk to village bakeries and shops and restaurants) but the schools are dreadful. The nanaquaquet- ok I didn't spell that right but it is a nice area of tiverton. The commonfence point area of portsmouth is a quaint waterfront community. Little compton is gorgeous and the taxes are LOW but its a haul to get out there. Also RI has some of the best private schools in the country- you would find a lot of people in your $$$ range send their kids to private school.
I would definately check out some areas of portsmouth if you haven't already.
What are you looking for? If you tell us more of what kind of life-style you are looking for it might be easier to recommend certain neighborhoods.

[zombiemommie]

One of the reasons I am looking for a strong public school district is I have a 2nd grade son with dyslexia who is just starting to get help in the school / special ed.

We have small kids. We love the beach (we live 4 miles from the beach now in NJ). We would love to have a kayak and be close enough to walk to the water (be it a river, creek, tidal area, whatever). We like nature. We also would like to be in a walking town, where there is a town center, library, parks , coffee shops, etc that you can either bike or walk to. Smaller sized schools. a place where 9 year olds can ride their bike to a friend's house and then to get ice cream or pizza. But somewhere that people take care of their homes, flower boxes, neat lawns, pride of ownership.

[professorsenator]

Originally Posted by zombiemommie

One of the reasons I am looking for a strong public school district is I have a 2nd grade son with dyslexia who is just starting to get help in the school / special ed.

We have small kids. We love the beach (we live 4 miles from the beach now in NJ). We would love to have a kayak and be close enough to walk to the water (be it a river, creek, tidal area, whatever). We like nature. We also would like to be in a walking town, where there is a town center, library, parks , coffee shops, etc that you can either bike or walk to. Smaller sized schools. a place where 9 year olds can ride their bike to a friend's house and then to get ice cream or pizza. But somewhere that people take care of their homes, flower boxes, neat lawns, pride of ownership.

Barrington, Barrington, Barrington: Best schools in the state (including good special ed), right on the water, town beach, community pride, on the East Bay bike path, charming town center with shops. It's the full package.

[traceyr13]

I agree totally that Barrington sounds like a good fit for you - and with regard to the special education services for the district, they have a relatively new special ed director (she has been the director for 2 years, worked at the high school for years before that) Susan Healy-Mills, and she is fantastic. I worked closely with her for many years at the high school, and can't say enough good things about her.

[professorsenator]

Originally Posted by jakedog1

Well since no one else will say it I feel compelled to add that Barrington is snobby very very snobby. (and preppy and white collar) Home to the RI country club and progolfer Brad Faxon- many executives for the major firms in RI who do not choose to live on the East Side choose Barrington.

I'd say this is true overall, though it is probably true for just about every upscale place in every other state. I would add, too, that one can always find people in such areas who are not snooty. FWIW, I personally have no problem with people who are "preppy," pro-golfers, and/or executives. And I would add that Barrington has lots of Brown U. faculty who tend to be intellectual types. I have no problem with those folks, either.

Originally Posted by jakedog1

There has also been what can only now be described as a series of untimely deaths of teen boys in the area- a high parental tolerance to underaged drinking (and old boys will be boys mentality) has led one of the best school systems to experience a tragic series of losses.

This is true and it is arguably the most significant indictment against Barrington today. There is clearly a problem of some parents tolerating teen drinking, too willing to turn a blind eye to this behavior and complicit in the problem by way of willful negligence or ignorance. I do not think it is all parents in Barrington nor even most, but it does seem to be a problem. Perhaps even more distressing is that some folks in town have been too willing to ignore the warning calls from police ans schools officials.

[lunasolnube]

Tiverton is blue collar, small town mentality. School system is lacking due to lack of town funds. Barrington has a much better school system, quaint, more upper class. Not to say that Tiverton isn't a quaint beautiful small town. I think Tiverton is filled with more 'narrow-minded' people than Barrington.