Scofield Ridge/Farms homeowners with kids - do you send your children to private school? (Austin: apartment)

[eirenecat]

Aside from the teeny little slice of Scofield that is zoned for AISD, it seems nearly all of this otherwise-appealing neighborhood is zoned for pretty terrible schools in Pflugerville. I am guessing this must be why the home prices here are about $100-150K lower than houses of similar size, vintage, and builder across Mopac and 183. Scofield is really appealing to me because of it's location--I work in engineering near the Arboretum, and husband is an attorney downtown, and we don't want him to have any more of a terrible commute than he already has from Quail Creek where we currently live. (The Quail Creek elementary schools are absolute non-starters, and we need to move sometime in the next year before oldest daughter hits kindergarten.)

Is Parmer Lane Elementary bad? I can read Great Schools reviews on my own (and they are quite mixed for that school), but I'm interested in hearing from people whose children go or have gone there. If you're a Scofield homeowner with small children, do you just send your kids to private school?

[caseyfan4ever]

I have lived in Scofield Farms for 10 years and have a son who attends Parmer Lane Elementary. It's true, many neighbors choose to send their children to either private or charter schools (we have several popular charter schools nearby such as NYOS and Star). However, I advise you to check out Parmer Lane for yourself before making a decision based on ratings. Our son attended private school (St. Francis) for K/1st before we decided to transfer him to Parmer Lane so he could receive services for dyslexia. His experience last year was great - small classes (his 2nd grade class had 15 students) and excellent services. There is a small group of very involved parents and the principal/assistant principal are very committed to success.

I'm sad that more parents haven't given Parmer Lane a chance, but each family has to make their own decisions! Scofield Farms is a great neighborhood with a strong HOA and many family activities. Definitely check it out - as you mentioned, homes are a great value, and if PISD schools aren't for you, there are many other options nearby.

Please feel free to PM me if you need more information.

Thanks,

caseyfan

Originally Posted by eirenecat

Aside from the teeny little slice of Scofield that is zoned for AISD, it seems nearly all of this otherwise-appealing neighborhood is zoned for pretty terrible schools in Pflugerville. I am guessing this must be why the home prices here are about $100-150K lower than houses of similar size, vintage, and builder across Mopac and 183. Scofield is really appealing to me because of it's location--I work in engineering near the Arboretum, and husband is an attorney downtown, and we don't want him to have any more of a terrible commute than he already has from Quail Creek where we currently live. (The Quail Creek elementary schools are absolute non-starters, and we need to move sometime in the next year before oldest daughter hits kindergarten.)

Is Parmer Lane Elementary bad? I can read Great Schools reviews on my own (and they are quite mixed for that school), but I'm interested in hearing from people whose children go or have gone there. If you're a Scofield homeowner with small children, do you just send your kids to private school?

[latikeriii]

Parmer Lane elementary isn't the problem, Westview Middle, and Connally High have gone down the tubes in recent years.

[riaelise]

Originally Posted by latikeriii

Parmer Lane elementary isn't the problem, Westview Middle, and Connally High have gone down the tubes in recent years.

Agreed. Parmer Elementary is rated an "8" according to GreatSchools, so it isn't bad at all. The other two schools, that pull from largely apartment dwelling students from the surrounding areas, aren't all that great. Ironic how the worst of the Pflugerville ISD high schools isn't in Pflugerville, but rather Austin. Connally in particular hasn't been good in a while.

Star Charter is pretty hard to get in, not because of testing or anything like that, but due to its limited space and tons of people seeking to gain admittance. We tried that once and didn't bother again. On the open enrollment day, there were people camped out the night before, sleeping overnight outside of the school's doors. No thanks.

[caseyfan4ever]

It's possible to transfer for middle or high school within PISD...if we are still living in the area when our son enters middle school, we may choose this option. Although I do have neighbors whose children attend Westview and Connally and have had a positive experience (it isn't all bad - there are some good programs there, at least if your child is in pre-AP or AP classes, or band/orchestra).

[A-Tex]

Originally Posted by eirenecat

Aside from the teeny little slice of Scofield that is zoned for AISD, it seems nearly all of this otherwise-appealing neighborhood is zoned for pretty terrible schools in Pflugerville. I am guessing this must be why the home prices here are about $100-150K lower than houses of similar size, vintage, and builder across Mopac and 183. Scofield is really appealing to me because of it's location--I work in engineering near the Arboretum, and husband is an attorney downtown, and we don't want him to have any more of a terrible commute than he already has from Quail Creek where we currently live. (The Quail Creek elementary schools are absolute non-starters, and we need to move sometime in the next year before oldest daughter hits kindergarten.)

Is Parmer Lane Elementary bad? I can read Great Schools reviews on my own (and they are quite mixed for that school), but I'm interested in hearing from people whose children go or have gone there. If you're a Scofield homeowner with small children, do you just send your kids to private school?

I'm confused as to why you'd be trading in a home in an area with abysmal schools for one with just slightly better ones beyond elementary. Would the private school tuition not offset the savings you'd gain by buying into the Scofield Farms area rather than across Mopac/183? If you were able to manage to transfer your kid into a better middle and high school in the district, how would the time/distance/cost affect the commute you're attempting to minimize? What kind of budget are you really looking at?

[riaelise]

Originally Posted by caseyfan4ever

It's possible to transfer for middle or high school within PISD...if we are still living in the area when our son enters middle school, we may choose this option. Although I do have neighbors whose children attend Westview and Connally and have had a positive experience (it isn't all bad - there are some good programs there, at least if your child is in pre-AP or AP classes, or band/orchestra).

Yes, but the problem with that is: the better PISD middle and high schools are pretty deep into Pflugerville (Northeast), so you'd be commuting more. Also, they may not be open to transfers because of capacity issues. The better schools tend to be at overcapacity. Kelly Lane Middle is over capacity, so much so that two new schools opened up as relief. They will also be constructing a new high school to relieve Hendrickson, but that too will be located in the Northeast of Pflugerville.

I went to a great program in a BAD high school and I turned out fine. If the OP really likes the cost savings by buying into Scofield, then it isn't a total fail.

[caseyfan4ever]

I would never consider our move to Scofield a fail (and trust me, I am very informed about the inner workings of the neighborhood and schools)...the OP really needs to check it out for herself and talk to people. Our son is adopted from another race/culture and the diversity of the schools we are zoned to works well for him/us, but everyone needs to look at what works best for them.

[eirenecat]

A-Tex, you're right. When I did some more of the math, the cost of private school tuition for two children does not offset the savings of Scofield houses. What appeals to us about Scofield are the size of the houses and proximity to both 35 and Mopac. I'm glad to know that Parmer Lane Elementary has some good aspects to it, but it sounds like we would still have to move elsewhere for middle/high school, and I'm not terribly interested in doing that.