What schools are the best in Tucson? (Mesa, Scottsdale: environment, work)

[hoskier]

We are moving from Chandler, AZ to Tucson in the next month or two. Ideally, we would like to get down there before the school season starts, but we need to sell our house here first.

Our kids have been going to Heritage Academy in Mesa (13 year old, soon to be 8th grader--oldest) and Chandler Traditional Academy Independence (soon to be 6th grader, 4th grader, and 2nd grader). We also have a 4 year old that has been accepted to Kindersteps up here. Yes, I have a lot of kids...6 total! The baby is only a few months old.

Anyway, our oldest is a very smart child and has been doing really well at Heritage Academy. He has just finished Geometry and Kempo. He also played soccer and basketball there. The school is a smaller chartered school that really focuses on education and being good, upstanding citizens. The school also had a uniform policy that he didn't mind. He is signed up for 9th grade classes for his 8th grade year. Is there a good chartered or public school district that can accomodate his educational needs? We would consider a private school if it didn't kill us financially.

Also, is there a great area for a family of 8 to live where there are good people, good schools and safe? If so, please help us understand where we should spend our time looking. I will be working near the airport and I would prefer to have a commute that is less than 30-40 minutes.

Thank you and I look forward to hearing your thoughts on schools and locations to live.

I did see people post that Oro Valley and the Foothills are good...but I am curious for other locations as well. Is the Vail district any good? What about South of Tucson in Sahuarita? All opinions are appreciated here.

[sophadilla]

I recomend Wilson K-8 in Oro Valley. I attended school there for my 8th grade year and was not only challenged by the ciriculum, but was also placed into the advanced classes that they have available there. I'm not familiar with a lot of other school districts/areas, but my experience is that Oro Valley is the most priviledged part of the Tucson area and consequently has better overall education.

[EditorinTexas]

We are moving to Tucson from Amarillo, Texas. We have a high school student and have done a lot of research. While we were there looking at houses we talked to a potential neighbor who taught at Wilson for years. She highly recommended it. We really like Oro Valley. My husband will be working on St. Mary's Road (downtown), and his commute should only be about 25 minutes. And I think it's great that you have lots of kids. Wish I could have done it, but two were my limit.

[T House]

Tucson public schools are generally bad - AZ is at the bottom of the US in pretty much every comparison and only does that well because of the quality of schools in Scottsdale / Paradise Valley. Remember that public schools are controlled by politicians and not educators nor parents and we have some pretty @@&"^^**$$!!! politicians here. Almost all non-pubic schools are religious (according to the Star, 47/50 non-public Elementaries) leaving three independents. The best education in Tucson is independent (the International School, St Gregorys) but they charge fees .... If your child is G9 or older, skip school and go straight to Pima Community College.

[michael krotchie]

Tucson has many good schools, here are a few links from the Arizona Dept. of Education (ADE) to help you take a look.

Highly Performing Schools

Excelling Schools

In addition here are the links to all the school districts in Tucson:
Amphi School District
Arizona School Report Cards
Catalina Foothills School District
Flowing Wells Unified School District
GreatSchools.net - School Ratings
Marana Unified School District
Pima County Schools
Sahuarita Unified School District
Sunnyside Unified School District
Tanque Verde Unified School District
Tucson Unified School District
Vail School District

As far as location, with the I-10 construction in Tucson a 30-40 minute commute time might restrict you from living in certain areas. The NW area of town all the way to Gladden Farms shouldn't be a problem because of it's proximity to I-10 but Oro Valley and the Foothills will be a longer commute. Vail will also be a quick up up I-10 to the airport.

Hope some of these links help!

[skategal]

Grew up here, and graduated from Catalina Foothills High School after being in the district all the way through. In my opinion, one of the VERY best. Very college prep environment, lots of incredible opportunities, academically challenging with alot of extracurriculars and AP classes to offer. I recall my years in the lower grades being very nurturing too- I always felt like both academics and the environment were wonderful. Competitive, but pushes students to do their best. At our graduation, more than 8 million dollars in scholarships were offered to our 500 graduating class- that seemed to say alot...

There are other good districts I'm sure- Foothills competitive environment isn't for everyone, and they have their weaknesses like any district- just sharing my experiences! Best of luck to you in your search!

[ChrtnsMom]

I did see people post that Oro Valley and the Foothills are good...but I am curious for other locations as well. Is the Vail district any good? What about South of Tucson in Sahuarita? All opinions are appreciated here.[/quote]


We moved from NY (Long Island) which has the best school systems..to Oro Valley, because we opted for the Amphi School District (more affordabe then Foothills', which is rated the best in Tucson) My son just completed
5th grade in Copper Creek and will be going to Wilson next month for Middle school. I have heard amazing things about the school vs. Cross....just hoping all I heard is true.

[Subie]

I live in Vail, and constantly read about how well Vail School District is doing. I know that's all relative because this IS Tucson, but I've read Vail has really been focusing a lot of attention on it's education.

[pancho777]

Rincon High and University High Magnet, right in the middle of town are top rated, as are Lineweaver Elementary, Bonillas, Sam Hughes, and a few others. Check out Great Schools.com, and don't just run for the burbs based on a few bad schools in the center, there are some very good ones in TUSD, as well as top charter schools like Basis in the nicer parts of mid-town (Broadway and Alvernon, Broadway and Swan areas).

[Steel87]

The strongest high school in Tucson by far is University High Magnet School. It shares a campus with Rincon High. If you are looking at academic achievements such as Flinn Scholars, National Merit Scholars, High Achieving AP Marks, and Average Scholarship Money per Student, University High is by far the strongest. Students have to take an exam to place in.

Another strong school is Catalina Foothills.

If you are looking at your child's future, such as scholarship money or potential college applications, these two in Tucson will help you the most.