Best Schools and Neighborhood? (Richmond, Tuckahoe: houses, neighborhoods, place to live)

[ecwag]

We are moving to Richmond in early 2009 and have been searching for the perfect place to live. We have 2 children (8 & 5) who are bright and school/teacher quality is the most important criteria for us in making our decision. We have been told that Henrico County schools are great and the neighborhoods with Tuckahoe/Tuckahoe/Freeman schools are the best. However, that is not what I am reading here. Can anyone explain?

[sls76]

There are tons of great schools in Henrico (and Chesterfield) County. Most of the schools in 23059 and 23233 are outstanding (e.g., Shady Grove, Twin Hickory, Nuckols Farm, Short Pump, Colonial Trail and Rivers Edge elementaries, Short Pump and Pocahontas middle schools and Godwin and Deep Run high schools). These are the ones I'm most familiar with, but honestly there are so many good schools in this area so you have a lot of choices.

I've used Great Schools - Public and Private School Ratings, Reviews and Parent Community and https://p1pe.doe.virginia.gov/reportcard/
when I was trying to get information.

[PickPatrick]

You have many many options......

I suggest if you visit the city/county webpages you can get a feel for each school and how they perceive themselves.... Here is a list off of my webpage: Local School Districts (http://pickpatrick.com/3/W0000016273/P0000293962.htm - broken link)

[whynot?]

I think the two possibilities may be that 1) many people who post here have moved into the area fairly recently (v. native Richmonders) and live farther out west in Henrico, where the houses and schools are newer. And 2) the information you got may be a tad dated? I agree with the posters below. You're lucky -- we're all lucky -- to have so many good options for public schools in the area. Check out the schools online, but do visit to see where your family will be most comfortable.

[PickPatrick]

excellent advice!!!! Once you narrow the search down to a manageable number an onsite visit is critical. I know many families that have gone nearly 360 after a visit and observation..... it "gotta feel great" and you get that feeling from being there not reading about it.

[SmokeyBong420]

Short Pump / Glen Allen in the west end of Henrico
Midlothian in chesterfield

[ecwag]

Thank you for all of the great advice. Unfortunately, I live in Florida and that makes school visits very difficult. I am also not used to locals thinking a wide range of schools are great. Where I live there are good schools and bad schools and everyone knows which are which.
If the Tuckahoe schools are not any better than other Henrico or Chesterfield schools, why are the houses in the supporting neighborhoods so much more expensive?

[sls76]

Originally Posted by ecwag

Thank you for all of the great advice. Unfortunately, I live in Florida and that makes school visits very difficult. I am also not used to locals thinking a wide range of schools are great. Where I live there are good schools and bad schools and everyone knows which are which.
If the Tuckahoe schools are not any better than other Henrico or Chesterfield schools, why are the houses in the supporting neighborhoods so much more expensive?

Maybe I'm mistaken, but I don't think the homes that feed into Tuckahoe are more expensive than homes in Short Pump or Midlothian. BTW, we chose our school without visiting and it worked out fine, but if it's possible it definitely seems like a good idea.

[ellieb128]

You really do have a lot of great choices as far as schools and neighborhoods go so you can let yourself use more than just school to pick your house. Whether they are at Tuckahoe, Short Pump Elementary or Robious or Bettie Weaver in Chesterfield etc etc they will be in great schools and school systems. Henrico County is beginning a huge redistricting project so you might not want to let yourself get too attached to one school or feeder pattern. Redistricting will be the largest ever in Henrico - Search - inRich.com (http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/search.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-10-20-0079.html - broken link)

[HReynolds]

Check out the Midlothian area in Chesterfield County. They offer a wealth of new and modern neighborhoods as well as some of the top schools in the nation. Midlothian boasts the Richmond Metropolitan Area's top high school in James River (21st in the state, 205th nationally according to Newsweek in 2008) along with 3 other top high schools in Midlothian(457 national), Clover Hill(893 nat.), and Monacan(1,022 nat.) The feeder schools have some of the highest rankings in the state as well. Those high schools are ranked so well because of the early quality education received at the elementary and middle levels. http://www.richmond.com/news-features/24295 (broken link)