Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hi, everyone! My husband and I are on a home search. We are a young family. Our oldest will be starting school next September, and we are looking for small, decent schools. We feel that a lot of the work comes from home too, so average test scores are not a huge concern, but safety is. We would like a cute, quiet neighborhood where the kids can play. We currently live in Schenectady (where I grew up) and we have none of that anymore. Our realtor has sent us listings in Gloversville area, and we went to look at a few. At first glance, the neighborhood we saw seems to fit, but I would like some input from people who may know better. Does this area and the schools fit the description of what we're looking for? Thanks for any help you can provide!
If it were me, I would avoid Gloversville schools. My husband grew up there. It's a running joke between us that kids coming out of there are lacking a lot of education. He actually graduated around the same time as some kids that could barely read/write, definitely not on the level they should be at. I never felt like the kids coming out of there were being taught very well, and there was a lot of troublemaking. I went to Mayfield and have nothing but good things to say about that school; very few kids got left behind, the teachers were always amazing. Things could have changed over the years though.
As for actual home location, I would aim for the outskirts of Gloversville. Violent crime isn't really much of an issue in the area. A lot of crime is just bar fights, drunk driving, and domestic disputes. I'd suggest actually driving through the area during the day for the streets you're looking at, and drive through the area on like a Saturday night. Most of the bar activity is 10pm onward, with midnight or so where you'll start seeing problems pop up if there's going to be any, and 2-4am as people migrate from bars.
I personally think the majority of Gloversville looks like a dump. Not too many people care for their homes, and when they do it's sprinkled amongst poor looking properties. There are some areas that look better than others; Boulevard, Kingsboro, East Fulton (between Rt 30 & Kingsboro), State Street (West is a little more roomy than East). Most of the streets between Kingsboro & Rt 30 generally aren't too bad. I would choose Mayfield over Gloversville to live in (as well as the school), but I'm biased because that's been my whole life.
Either way, Schenectady isn't that far away (most people commute that far to work every day), so you should definitely take some time to drive around up this way if you haven't already. I've always heard to go check it during work hours on work days to see how many people are just wandering the streets, & drive around at night on a weekend.
There are lots of cute neighborhoods in Gloversville at a very good price. However, in these fiscal times, I would be nervous about sending my kids to any of the schools in Fulton or Montgomery Counties, except maybe Amsterdam. I say that because I am on a committee for Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery BOCES. Because the school districts are so small, the cuts to education have a much bigger effect on schools in that neck of the woods than in larger districts. In one middle school (I think Gloversville) students are getting 2 and 3 study halls a day because so many courses have been cut. One school didn't even have Spanish I recently - the kids took a class via TV. Many schools have closed their libraries even though it is against state regulations. One of the districts (can't remember which one) has 25% of the high school teachers teaching courses outside their content area. Every time I come home from one of the meetings, I feel like my district, ALBANY for goodness sake, is rich.
The flip side, of course, is that the schools tend to be tight knit communities. Kids that are a little awkward or having problems are identified more quickly, and staff are more likely to reach out to meet their needs and to be more nurturing. I think this leads to more community with the families as well.
If it were me, I would avoid Gloversville schools. My husband grew up there. It's a running joke between us that kids coming out of there are lacking a lot of education. He actually graduated around the same time as some kids that could barely read/write, definitely not on the level they should be at. I never felt like the kids coming out of there were being taught very well, and there was a lot of troublemaking. I went to Mayfield and have nothing but good things to say about that school; very few kids got left behind, the teachers were always amazing. Things could have changed over the years though.
As for actual home location, I would aim for the outskirts of Gloversville. Violent crime isn't really much of an issue in the area. A lot of crime is just bar fights, drunk driving, and domestic disputes. I'd suggest actually driving through the area during the day for the streets you're looking at, and drive through the area on like a Saturday night. Most of the bar activity is 10pm onward, with midnight or so where you'll start seeing problems pop up if there's going to be any, and 2-4am as people migrate from bars.
I personally think the majority of Gloversville looks like a dump. Not too many people care for their homes, and when they do it's sprinkled amongst poor looking properties. There are some areas that look better than others; Boulevard, Kingsboro, East Fulton (between Rt 30 & Kingsboro), State Street (West is a little more roomy than East). Most of the streets between Kingsboro & Rt 30 generally aren't too bad. I would choose Mayfield over Gloversville to live in (as well as the school), but I'm biased because that's been my whole life.
Either way, Schenectady isn't that far away (most people commute that far to work every day), so you should definitely take some time to drive around up this way if you haven't already. I've always heard to go check it during work hours on work days to see how many people are just wandering the streets, & drive around at night on a weekend.
Wow...well as a 1982 graduate of GHS, having gone to G'ville schools my entire life, I can say I do not agree with your assessment. Mayfield? really?? I know ya folks got poor John's and all but geez....
I was blessed to have lived near NLH until I got married in 1988. Great neighborhood back then- I had a really nice group of friends. We lived in the larger houses on Gillian Terrace, Easterly Street, Baker road and North Kingsboro around the golf course.
I can honestly say my Gloversville education worked out well for me. My teachers were, and still are, inspirational to me (thanks Mr. Clo, Mr. Corsini, etc.) I was involved in a great music program while there, excelled in social studies and science, knew almost all of my classmates and had a fairly idyllic high school experience.
Don't write off Gloversville or Johnstown too quickly.
There are many nice areas across the Capital District-However, be wise to the egotistical communities in which are rooted deeply. As newbies do not always get welcomed. I too have been raised in this area, Saratoga region;and find most people a bit repulsive with respect to their inferiority and egotistical ways (snobs).
There are many nice areas across the Capital District-However, be wise to the egotistical communities in which are rooted deeply. As newbies do not always get welcomed. I too have been raised in this area, Saratoga region;and find most people a bit repulsive with respect to their inferiority and egotistical ways (snobs).
Just curious what someone is supposed to do with this information regarding deeply rooted egotistical communities?
Maybe a specific/personal example of someone being nice and someone being repulsive would be more helpful.
Wow...well as a 1982 graduate of GHS, having gone to G'ville schools my entire life, I can say I do not agree with your assessment. Mayfield? really?? I know ya folks got poor John's and all but geez....
I was blessed to have lived near NLH until I got married in 1988. Great neighborhood back then- I had a really nice group of friends. We lived in the larger houses on Gillian Terrace, Easterly Street, Baker road and North Kingsboro around the golf course.
I can honestly say my Gloversville education worked out well for me. My teachers were, and still are, inspirational to me (thanks Mr. Clo, Mr. Corsini, etc.) I was involved in a great music program while there, excelled in social studies and science, knew almost all of my classmates and had a fairly idyllic high school experience.
Don't write off Gloversville or Johnstown too quickly.
Yeah...things have changed a lot since you graduated (30+ years is a long time, even Mayfield started changing for the worse around the time I graduated in '02). Looking up ratings, Gloversville school district averages a 4 out of 10 these days, while Mayfield averages 7 out of 10. Even then, there's been a "battle" so-to-speak over Mayfield and Northville schools merging because of finances, where Mayfield majority is for it, Northville voters are against, and it keeps coming back up because Northville can't keep afloat all that well on its own. And with that will come a mix-up of teachers & programs (if it ever happens).
Things have gone downhill in the area in general for Fulton-Montgomery county, especially after the recession (was around 2007/2008 that the statistics hit a hard change for the worst). If I remember right, Montgomery county was recently stated as the second (or very close to it) worst in the state for unemployment, with Fulton only a few places behind it. People just didn't have the money to take care of their properties (or themselves) like they used to, so curb appeal has gone down while crime has gone up, and school ratings drop (especially when you allow students to pass classes below what should be bare minimums, and while getting away with writing papers using the kind of shorthand found in texting. These were things that started popping up my last year in school and has only gotten worse. I have friends who teach and sub (in Fulton-Montgomery, as well as another state), and it's something they've seen all the time in recent years. Things are only just now looking like they're finally stabilizing in the area as a whole, but there are still lots of things that will slip through the cracks and take years to turn around for the better.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I know ya folks got poor John's and all but geez....
I was involved in a great music program while there, excelled in social studies and science, knew almost all of my classmates and had a fairly idyllic high school experience. 
Huh?
