going to non-zoned school in westchester? (New York, Cortland: credit, daycare, house)
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i assume this is pretty impossible, and hence huge property price differences?
are there any exceptions? such as students with particular needs or willing to pay a property differential?
what if you move once your children have begun attending a school? do they force you to leave?
asking specifically in reference to cortlandt manor i guess. there are a lot of pretty good schools, close to the home that's otherwise perfect. but i haven't heard very good things about the walter panas school district.
though again, i'm not sure i honestly have much appreciation for these things. i have no problems with a "good" public school and would prefer something solid/strong to one of those very best-pressure cooker-super intense kind of places. is the school system weak for westchester, or weak overall?
i assume this is pretty impossible, and hence huge property price differences?
are there any exceptions? such as students with particular needs or willing to pay a property differential?
what if you move once your children have begun attending a school? do they force you to leave?
asking specifically in reference to cortlandt manor i guess. there are a lot of pretty good schools, close to the home that's otherwise perfect. but i haven't heard very good things about the walter panas school district.
though again, i'm not sure i honestly have much appreciation for these things. i have no problems with a "good" public school and would prefer something solid/strong to one of those very best-pressure cooker-super intense kind of places. is the school system weak for westchester, or weak overall?
thanks in advance.
In many schools in the county you can move into another school if there is space and you pay for the cost per student to attend. It can be about $30k to $40k per student, so very few choose to do this. Many private schools are far cheaper than this.
If you are asking about cortlandt manor and Lakeland, I would tell you not to worry about it. Cortlandt Manor is a large town with students visiting 5 different school districts (Putnam, Lakeland, Yorkktown, Hendrick Hudson and Croton). BAsed on your email it sounds like you are in Lakeland. There is no Walter Panas school distrct. Walter Panas is one of the two high schools in the Lakeland school district. Lakeland has 5 elementary schools, one middle school and 2 high schools. The 2016 Niche school district ratings put Lakeland at 96 out of the 725 school districts in New York State, putting it in the top 13% of the state, hardly a problem school district. If you are comparing it to the top school districts down county, which are routinely ranked in the top 50 nationally, i guess you would conclude being in the top 13% of NY is bad. And compared to those schools, its certainly not in the same class. But as a parent of 2 in the district, I personally have no concerns, and I do not know any other parent in the area who has any concerns like you raise. All schools have there own issues. I know one parent who dislikes the chorus/music teacher in one of the schools, another who thinks we need more sports and athletics in the elementary schools, but these are hardly issues with the education system. If you can afford a private school, there is no question there are many that far outweigh Lakeland. But Lakeland is a strong school district with a very good reputation. Walter Panas is a fine high school. Compared to the rest of the state, its very strong. If you set your standard at those schools in the top 20 in the state and the top 100 nationally, you are going to have to pay for it. Lakeland is not weak at all. Its not weak for Westchester or weak for anywhere. In fact, its strong.
Lakeland has a very high spend per student, it has great sports, lots of college credit opportunities, a strong AP program and is well respected. I think its about where you set your standard. If you feel you need to have a school that is nationally ranked and sits in the top 20 in NY, you have lots of amazing schools down county which satisfy. Housing prices are higher, which is how the schools are able to get the tax revenue to have such incredible opportunities for the students. If that home price range is available to you, I would of course encourage you to do it. Its an amazing thing those schoosl do and I wish them all continued success at it. Attending those schools will prepare any student with opportunities most in the nation do not have. I would jump at the chance to go to one of those if you can. But if that is not in your financial picture, Lakeland is a very good school district with a large volume of homes in the $300,000 - $450,000 range, large lot sizes, lots of open green space, great families and a strong community. Its a wonderful place to raise a family and the schools should not be a turn off for anyone. Best of luck to you.
Thanks. This is exactly what I wanted to know and sounds perfect. I'm not too concerned about "best ever" and would honestly prefer to avoid the pressure cooker type environments that I think are more typical in those sorts of schools (no personal experience with any Westchester schools- they may be completely unlike this).
And really, life on a nicely updated 3 bedroom home with two huge dogs, a kiddo and several acres of land sounds sooooooo much better qol wise than wondering if i can really swing for that same size home, last updated in the sixties, on 5000 sq feet without serious financial stress. think he'd be happier there with more room too- there's even a lake!
now the only issues are the slightly longer commute to nyc, which i'll suck up, but hope end up not minding in the long run and really not wanting him to leave his current daycare.
happen to have a good daycare recommendation in the area? ideally spanish immersion/bilingual, but if not, just really nurturing? and are prices comparable to nyc at about 2k per month?
I'm not too concerned about "best ever" and would honestly prefer to avoid the pressure cooker type environments that I think are more typical in those sorts of schools (no personal experience with any Westchester schools- they may be completely unlike this).
All schools follow the same curriculum wherein their are challenging subjects and courseloads for anyone who wants it. You won't avoid the pressure cooker environment wherever you live because there will always be students who want to take those 6+ AP courses, 3 sports teams and 5 extracurriculars while applying to a dozen top colleges. The only thing you can do is ask your child not to copy their example but that can really be done in any school district.
All schools follow the same curriculum wherein their are challenging subjects and courseloads for anyone who wants it. You won't avoid the pressure cooker environment wherever you live because there will always be students who want to take those 6+ AP courses, 3 sports teams and 5 extracurriculars while applying to a dozen top colleges. The only thing you can do is ask your child not to copy their example but that can really be done in any school district.
Respectfully disagree. The pressure I 5hink being discussed is the pressure brought into the school by families. There are areas where the majority of families put tremendous pressure for academic excellence and others where it's much less so. For some cultures this us common and areas with several such cultures have far more issues of this pressure. For me, I think there are districts where pressure to achieve top grades is more more widespread than others. I have lived it in my schooling, my profession and in my kids school.
Respectfully disagree. The pressure I 5hink being discussed is the pressure brought into the school by families. There are areas where the majority of families put tremendous pressure for academic excellence and others where it's much less so. For some cultures this us common and areas with several such cultures have far more issues of this pressure. For me, I think there are districts where pressure to achieve top grades is more more widespread than others. I have lived it in my schooling, my profession and in my kids school.
Also, curriculums differ not just by district, but even by schools in the same district. Homework volume, speed and time on subjects can be significantly different.
Thanks. This is exactly what I wanted to know and sounds perfect. I'm not too concerned about "best ever" and would honestly prefer to avoid the pressure cooker type environments that I think are more typical in those sorts of schools (no personal experience with any Westchester schools- they may be completely unlike this).
And really, life on a nicely updated 3 bedroom home with two huge dogs, a kiddo and several acres of land sounds sooooooo much better qol wise than wondering if i can really swing for that same size home, last updated in the sixties, on 5000 sq feet without serious financial stress. think he'd be happier there with more room too- there's even a lake!
now the only issues are the slightly longer commute to nyc, which i'll suck up, but hope end up not minding in the long run and really not wanting him to leave his current daycare.
happen to have a good daycare recommendation in the area? ideally spanish immersion/bilingual, but if not, just really nurturing? and are prices comparable to nyc at about 2k per month?
What part of cortlandt manor? Near route 6 up by the cortlandt shopping center, on rt 202, by peekskill? Happy to help.
Respectfully disagree. The pressure I 5hink being discussed is the pressure brought into the school by families. There are areas where the majority of families put tremendous pressure for academic excellence and others where it's much less so.
You can't force a student to take >6 AP courses if he does not want to. All districts offer regular classes to those who want to follow a slower pace. If anything, the pressure is being put on the students by their own parents - which is true in all school districts.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dr.strangelove
Also, curriculums differ not just by district, but even by schools in the same district. Homework volume, speed and time on subjects can be significantly different.
This (underlined) is not curriculum.
Last edited by Forest_Hills_Daddy; 01-14-2016 at 12:37 PM..
You can't force a student to take >6 AP courses if he does not want to. All districts offer regular classes to those who want to follow a slower pace. If anything, the pressure is being put on the students by their own parents - which is true in all school district.
not sure i agree about not being able to force a kid to take more on than they otherwise would. i ended up being one of those kids. went to public school through middle school, did really well, and had no external pressure from my parents. i mean, they always expected me to try hard, but mostly just let things alone. my mom would repeatedly tell me things like "the best a is an a-minus," insist on taking "mental health days" from school, and was just very low key. there was the assumption i'd go to college, but no agonizing about which one, what i'd do, electives for it, etc. she repeatedly told me how great of a deal community college was. and i really enjoyed classes/life and i think was pretty well-rounded.
then i got a scholarship to go to a really good private high school- one of those top 5 in the country type of schools, and pressure from them didn't change, but suddenly i was a wreck. i took every ap i could (15), every extracurricular that would both have me and look good for college, etc. and it was totally because of the environment. "everyone" was doing that. that was normal. what if i fell behind? so better do it too. i did well. but it really wasn't that good for me.
sure, i was pretty easily pushed and that was because of who i was. but it all matters. yourself. your parents. your school environment. you could have everything in your life minimizing the importance of academic achiever and still be the ultimate presssure cooker kid, or everything in the world pushing you towards competitiveness and still not really care. but most kids can be nudged one way or the other.
What part of cortlandt manor? Near route 6 up by the cortlandt shopping center, on rt 202, by peekskill? Happy to help.
the specific place i love is close to the bear mountain state parkway on gabriel dr. honestly though, there's so much inventory. i'd love suggestions from someone who lives there about the best areas to focus on. the price range you mentioned (300-450k) is ideal. the must haves are at least 3 bedrooms, at least a half acre and a house that is not a fixer upper.
pluses would be: proximity to train, more than an acre, nicely updated. don't super care about being really close to cute parts of town. walkability is good, but willing to live further out for more land.
and wherever i live, it'd be nice to have a great daycare nearby. i work from home 50% of the time, but on days i go into the city, i need one open until 6:30.
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