Schools in the Roanoke area - How are they? (Cave Spring: low income, real estate)

[Mumof3]

My husband and I are looking at different job opportunities in the Roanoke area. Basically We have 2 special needs children and so We would need a good school district. Also what is the area like for families in general? House prices? Any info would be greatly appreciated - Thanks..

[seanpecor]

Mumof3, I live just south of Roanoke County in Boones Mill (Franklin County). Both Roanoke County and Franklin County are well funded and nicely performing districts. We're from Vermont, and we own a horse farm and we have two young girls. I believe Roanoke County does well by its special needs kids; my brother in-law lives in Florida and researched it when trying to land a firefighting job in Roanoke. He spoke well of Roanoke County and Franklin County, and I'm sure he really did his homework as they've got a young boy with very, very severe disabilities.

If you have specific questions feel free to PM me or visit my web site (via my profile) and email me.

Cheers,

Sean

[ChristieC]

I just moved to the Vinton VA area (right east of Roanoke) for the great school systems. It is the county system and the taxes are a bit more, but definitely worth it. The only issue I have with Franklin co is the area is so large that your kids could be on the bus upwards of an hour. In the county you are looking at 20 min tops. I went to hidden valley/cave spring and it was a great experience. Good luck!

[seanpecor]

Originally Posted by ChristieC

I just moved to the Vinton VA area (right east of Roanoke) for the great school systems. It is the county system and the taxes are a bit more, but definitely worth it. The only issue I have with Franklin co is the area is so large that your kids could be on the bus upwards of an hour. In the county you are looking at 20 min tops. I went to hidden valley/cave spring and it was a great experience. Good luck!

Exactly, it's important in Franklin County to live somewhat near to Rocky Mount where the high school and middle school is located. Where we're located (in the northern side of Franklin County) we're a 15 minute straight drive to the middle school, and 20 minutes to the high school. I think it's something like 20 and 30 minutes respectively if our kids attended the public schools and took the bus. That's not bad really. The long hauls are for kids on the Lake, I've heard of 50 minute one way bus commutes to high school (yuck).

Our girls attend North Cross, and we drive down to beautiful downtown Boones Mill (haha) and the little Franklin County North Cross bus takes our girls to school in Roanoke. From the bus stop - Cannadays Country Store - our girls get to school in 30 minutes which isn't too bad all things considered.

Sean

[starcity]

Cave Spring- Rich kid School
Fleming- A Little Dangerous
Byrd-redneck school
salem/glenvar/botetourt-see byrd

send your kid to Patrick Henry

[Mumof3]

Thanks for all the responses. I would love to hear from someone specifically regarding the quality of the public schools. I have read that VA is the 6th best state educationally in the nation. So that I feel is a good start. I suppose what I want to know is - class sizes...how big....extra curricular activities...etc...Like I mentioned before special needs is a big issue for me having 2 children with ASD's...Are there any areas to avoid in Roanoke? My husband saw some nice looking Victorian houses on the web the other day and I think it said it was called the Historic district?? Anyway, not sure exactly but what would the schools be like there?? I suppose when all is said and done anything would be better than what we have to put up with now because Californian schools are dreadful on the whole...badly funded with teachers not really caring except for their pay check of course!!! Any help would be appreciated...Mumof3

[jballa]

I went to school at William Byrd and enjoyed it. The classrooms and buildings were sufficient for the amount of students and were well kept, though we're talking 10 years ago. My nephews/nieces go there now and all do well in classes, and Roanoke County Schools overall are great. There was also always an emphasis on special ed.

As far as an area to stay away from, that would be SE city (excluding Gardent City). SE county (Mt. Pleasant) is spectacular, 5-10 min. from downtown and 5-10 minutes from middle of nowhere, mountain views, spacious lots, and reasonable home prices but you're looking at a 30 min bus ride to Byrd MS/HS.

Good Luck

[ChristieC]

Honestly, a trip here to check out the area with a local real estate agent would nearly be neccessary. Or renting until you get to know the area better. My husband, who is from NJ, has commented frequently on how odd our area is in regards to "good neighborhood, bad neighborhood" SW is overall a great area, however the rest is a mish mosh of good areas and not so good areas. There are good streets in bad places and bad streets in good places. Although Roanoke's "ghetto" is really not that bad, it is bad for Roanoke. Do not go to Melrose area, Wasena Area, or 10th St. The area's there are very low income, which is not a big deal and most people are nice, however there is a bit of gang activity behind the scenes. Some of the Historic District is not so nice as well, (a friend of mine who was taking a historic tour saw someone stabbed two streets down from the tour! I think it was on Walnut St). Please don't let this info deter you from moving here, it really is a great place. I personnally have never had any security issues and I have been here most of my life.
jballa is absolutely right about the William Byrd School System (Rke County), it is fantastic! The Vinton area is a great place to live, especially the new developments. The taxes are high but worth it.
Happy Hunting!

[BBGsinger]

This is a great thread. We are considering a relocate to the Roanoke area in a couple years.

I did some internet searches for rental properties in the area and didn't find much. Can anyone tell me how much you would pay for a 2BR apt/house in the city or surrounding areas of Roanoke? We have a dog and 2 cats. The housing looks quite affordable if you are buying (which we will eventually do if we move there and like it). We currently rent a large townhome for $800/mo. What kind of rental properties can we find... we prefer a private rental as opposed to an apartment community if we have to rent.

Thanks!!

[seanpecor]

I think $800 would get you a townhome in the Roanoke area, or a 3BR house on the fringe about 10 minutes from Roanoke.