Upscale Suburbs of Salt Lake City (Sandy, Murray: houses, neighborhood, school district)

[DP525]

Originally Posted by US-Traveller

I have been to Salt Lake City and stayed in downtown for 2 nights. I was working, so I did not get to see much. I have spent most of my time in Boston and Chicago, so 30-40 minute commute sounds like a breeze to me. I have heard about Cottonwood Heights and Sandy. I would be interested to learn more about the school system because I have a child, specifically how does the high school system work in Utah?

Keep in mind, about Park City, its elevation is 7000+ feet and is reached via a steep, winding canyon using Interstate 80. It snows a lot there and road closures through the canyon and at Parley's Summit are common. And even when it isn't snowing, you will get to compete with all the cross-country truckers and weekend skiiers on the freeway.

[US-Traveller]

I checked out GreatSchools.net and it was hard to compare because the schools where I lived in Chicago and now in Midland, MI are 10/10 schools and so far the highest rated I have seen are in Park City and those are 8/10. But, I understand that standards in Utah might be higher than Michigan and Illinois. The parent reviews of Park City High School have been mixed. I have found that South Jordan has a lot of things I am looking for. I am still concerned about the school system. Does the South Jordan school system have a decent reputation? What is the South Jordan Towne Center.

[US-Traveller]

Lmejh, I would like an area that offers nice parks, bike trails, walking paths, decent public schools, public pool, and a community house. I have read about people paying for public school and paying for schools out of their district, how does that work?

[frogandtoad]

I don't know what level school you're looking for (elementary?) but I can tell you the following elementaries are 10/10 in SLC:

Beacon Heights--zip 84108
Bonneville-84108
Cottonwood--84117
Eastwood--84109
Fox Hills Magnet (only the magnet portion. The rest of the school is a "2")--84118
Unitah--84105

The following are 9/10:
Dilworth--84108
Canyon View--84121

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

The ratings on greatschools.net should be unifrom across the country-they rate them on several factors. Utah schools are overcrowded for the most part, due to the high brith-rate. There are county indoor pools across the valley.

[frogandtoad]

I heard that actually the ratings on greatschools are based on how kids do on the state testing. Because state testing varies by state, they are not uniform comparisons. For example, schools with a "10" in AZ are often way below schools with an "8" in other states as AZ lags way behind most other states in achievement and their testing is measuring a standard which is lower than other states. There is a nationwide test (I think AIMS?) but not all kids take it. If you can find that, it compares states to one another accurately but many areas do not administer this test.

[hueimo]

Originally Posted by US-Traveller

Lmejh, I would like an area that offers nice parks, bike trails, walking paths, decent public schools, public pool, and a community house. I have read about people paying for public school and paying for schools out of their district, how does that work?

US-Traveller, you have all the similar questions I had for the public schools (same questions about the school ratings on the greatschool site.), I just moved here 3 months ago from Hawaii. I had that same question about needing to pay for public school if it's out of your district, I am trying to get my son into a school outside of our school boundry, and I called, they said there's no charge, except for a small fee of $5 for getting the permit approved. I don't know why I read too on certain site that some people had to pay and this was in Utah too...try call the school districts to reconfirm, sometimes I still find it hard to believe that it isn't as hard as we thought to get our kids to another school boundry, but it really isn't that hard, it all depends on the schools though, got to call both the specific school and the district office to make sure...we're lucky in Utah, in other states, there are more restrictions to get this done. BTW, south town center is a very nice indoor mall at the city Sandy, my family loves that mall the best so far...

[Lmejh]

Originally Posted by hueimo

BTW, south town center is a very nice indoor mall at the city Sandy, my family loves that mall the best so far...

Have you been to the Gateway yet? Usually this is the crowd favorite when it comes to malls.

[hueimo]

Originally Posted by Lmejh

Have you been to the Gateway yet? Usually this is the crowd favorite when it comes to malls.

yes, that's the first mall we have been to since we've moved here, but the parking is too tight and there's a fee except for Sun. I personally love indoor malls, tried the fashion place, but still prefer south town center... thanks for referring me to gateway though, it's nice too.

[US-Traveller]

I have browsed through some homes that come up when I enter Holladay on realtor.com and I think it offers a nice selection. What would be the benefits to living in Holladay as to South Jordan, Sandy, Park City, Draper, or Riverton?

What grade do the high schools start in the Salt Lake City area? The greatschools.net scores only apply to the state, because it is based on state testing.

Does anyone know of any websites where I can get more school information and more information regarding Salt Lake City and its surroundings?