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Hello everyone, I am planning to move to Baltimore to work at JHU for about one year, starting next September. I am professor at a Brazilian university, my wife is medical doctor and we have two boys (3 and 7 years old). We are thinking about renting a 2 bedroom apartment at a price range of $1500 - $1800. While I am at JHU, my wife should engage an English course. Also, we need to register our kids in scholl (the younger one at pre-k and the oldest in 1st grade elementary). Finally, although we plan to buy a small car to move around, we intend to use the public transport system. If possible, we would like to hear from you about:
- What are the best neigbourghood and public (private are out of our budget) schools downtown.
- What are the best neigbourghood and public schools in the suburbs.
- What do we need to do to register our kids in a public school.
- Working at JHU/downtown, what would be the best - living downtown or in the suburbs?
- Let´s say we live in the suburbs - can we get easy public transport to JHU/downtown?
- Any tips about good english courses for foreigners?
Thank you so much. Any help would be most appreciated.
If possible, we would like to hear from you about:
- What are the best neigbourghood and public (private are out of our budget) schools downtown.
- What are the best neigbourghood and public schools in the suburbs.
- Working at JHU/downtown, what would be the best - living downtown or in the suburbs?
- Let´s say we live in the suburbs - can we get easy public transport to JHU/downtown?
The first question for you is which campus of JHU would you be working at? The main Homewood campus is the mid-north part of the city, and the Medical campus is on the near-East side of the city.
The second question is whether your first-grader understands English.
You might want to learn to use SchoolDigger.com - School Rankings, Reviews and More - Public and Private Elementary, Middle, High Schools which will show a map of elementary schools and 1-5 rating. It turns up a few schools rated 4 or 5 in Baltimore City: Cecil, at 2000 Cecil Avenue in 21218, Medfield Heights in 21211, Empowerment Academy in 21216, Thomas Johnson at 100 East Heath in 21230 and Roland Park in 21210. Generally, the schools in the city are not great.
There is public bus, light rail and subway in both the city and the suburbs. Plus Hopkins has shuttle bus service for employees and students. So it is possible to live in the suburbs. I'd suggest looking at Catonsville, Owings Mills and Towson. Please also check with the JHU housing office to see if they have listings. Also see this thread for some of the same requirements: //www.city-data.com/forum/balti...i-looking.html and this thread: //www.city-data.com/forum/balti...buildings.html
Here is some information about registering a child in the City schools: http://www.baltimorecityschools.org/...spx?PageID=526 You need proof of age and residence. It does not mention it, but I think your child should also have all his immunizations up-to-date. Here is information about English as a second language classes if your child needs help: http://www.baltimorecityschools.org/...px?PageID=1048 . I notice Roland Park Elementary has them, and that is a wonderful neighborhood. That school is rated a 4 of 5 in schooldigger.
Last edited by goldenage1; 02-03-2013 at 08:57 AM..
My recommendation is that you live near the Homewood campus, as there are several apartment buildings zone for the Roland Park Elementary/Middle School. Some of these buildings are: Hopkins House at 110 West 39th, The Carlyle at 500 West University, or ones at 100 West University or 3704 Charles Street.
None of my kids understand english - but they will take lessons for the next 6 months... I think they will be able to understand the basics till we move.
I´ll be working at the medical campus (by JH Hospital - Rutland Ave).
We have not yet decided for the subs or downtown, so your recomendations and tips shall be very useful.
The most important aspect is to get a good school for the kids and a nice neighbourhood with easy access to shops and public transportation.
We heard that Mont Vernon is a very nice place in downtown with lots of amenities around. What would you say about that?
Thank you for taking your time to answer us. We appreciate your kindness.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by goldenage1
The first question for you is which campus of JHU would you be working at? The main Homewood campus is the mid-north part of the city, and the Medical campus is on the near-East side of the city.
The second question is whether your first-grader understands English.
You might want to learn to use SchoolDigger.com - School Rankings, Reviews and More - Public and Private Elementary, Middle, High Schools which will show a map of elementary schools and 1-5 rating. It turns up a few schools rated 4 or 5 in Baltimore City: Cecil, at 2000 Cecil Avenue in 21218, Medfield Heights in 21211, Empowerment Academy in 21216, Thomas Johnson at 100 East Heath in 21230 and Roland Park in 21210. Generally, the schools in the city are not great.
There is public bus, light rail and subway in both the city and the suburbs. Plus Hopkins has shuttle bus service for employees and students. So it is possible to live in the suburbs. I'd suggest looking at Catonsville, Owings Mills and Towson. Please also check with the JHU housing office to see if they have listings. Also see this thread for some of the same requirements: //www.city-data.com/forum/balti...i-looking.html and this thread: //www.city-data.com/forum/balti...buildings.html
Here is some information about registering a child in the City schools: Office of Enrollment, Choice and Transfers / Register for Schools You need proof of age and residence. It does not mention it, but I think your child should also have all his immunizations up-to-date. Here is information about English as a second language classes if your child needs help: Welcome Students / English as a Second Language Education . I notice Roland Park Elementary has them, and that is a wonderful neighborhood. That school is rated a 4 of 5 in schooldigger.
The most important aspect is to get a good school for the kids and a nice neighbourhood with easy access to shops and public transportation.
We heard that Mont Vernon is a very nice place in downtown with lots of amenities around. What would you say about that?
Mount Vernon is a very nice area, especially for young singles. However, the local elementary school (Mount Royal) only rates a 4 out of 10 at GreatSchools - Public and Private School Ratings, Reviews and Parent Community . The school also does not have an English as Second Language program. The apartments in Mount Vernon also tend to be the most expensive in the city.
I feel more comfortable recommending the Roland Park area. It will have more families, and people who teach at the Homewood campus.
Baltimore is not going to be like an European city with many walkable neighborhoods and shops and restaurants within walking distances in a relatively urban environment. There are a few neighborhoods that come comparatively close but it will not be the same. The densest areas (Mount Vernon, Fell's Point, Federal Hill etc) do not have great schools partly because there are fairly few children in those neighborhoods. Public transportation exists but is not great.
Your biggest issue is schooling for your oldest child. The Baltimore City schools do have several language immersion programs aimed at students who do not have English as a first language. Most kids on those classes will be children of recent Hispanic immigrants. Not every school has these classes, so you should contact the Baltimore City Public School system and find out what school would be appropriate for your child.
On the other hand if your child is only going into kindergarten he may not necessarily need the language immersion classes. Roland Park Elementary/Middle school is an excellent public school and for many people, the only public school in the entire city that they would trust. Roland Park Elementary/Middle has the advantage of being close to the Hopkins Homewood campus (about 4km away), it is surrounded by affluent neighborhoods but which include a number of comfortable apartment buildings just by Hopkins that would be ideal for your family and within your rent budget, and on top of it, there are some amenities including supermarkets and shops and restaurants within walking distance. I would look for apartments in buildings on University Parkway, the wide street that borders the north end of Homewood campus, and in a neighborhood called Tuscany Canterbury, which is just off University Parkway, as well as Roland Park itself.
I did a quick search and found this link: Welcome to Off-Campus Housing Homepage This seems to be the office at Hopkins aimed at helping students and graduate students settle in Baltimore. They will have worked with international students and faculty before and they will be able to tell you everything you need to know and provide recommendations for schools and housing.
Hello everyone, I am planning to move to Baltimore to work at JHU for about one year, starting next September. I am professor at a Brazilian university, my wife is medical doctor and we have two boys (3 and 7 years old). We are thinking about renting a 2 bedroom apartment at a price range of $1500 - $1800. While I am at JHU, my wife should engage an English course. Also, we need to register our kids in scholl (the younger one at pre-k and the oldest in 1st grade elementary). Finally, although we plan to buy a small car to move around, we intend to use the public transport system. If possible, we would like to hear from you about:
- What are the best neigbourghood and public (private are out of our budget) schools downtown.
- What are the best neigbourghood and public schools in the suburbs.
- What do we need to do to register our kids in a public school.
- Working at JHU/downtown, what would be the best - living downtown or in the suburbs?
- Let´s say we live in the suburbs - can we get easy public transport to JHU/downtown?
- Any tips about good english courses for foreigners?
Thank you so much. Any help would be most appreciated.
There are a handful of good public schools in the city limits AND close to downtown, but almost all of them are charter schools. Empowerment Acadamy and Midtown come to mind, but there are probably a few more. Normally those admit students by lottery. However, there are usually a few slots held to the side for kids living in a specific area surrounding a charter school, so if you plan carefully you can get around that.
Other than that, within the city limits, its the usual suspects: Roland Park Elementary and Mount Washington Elementary. I have heard great things about Medford Heights Elementary and sometimes Cross Country Elementary. There is a fairly well regarded charter in the Patterson Park area, I forgot what it is called (Patterson Park Charter?).
As far as the county, pretty much all county schools are good. There are very few exceptions on that front.
**EDIT** Nevermind, I see you will be working at the Hospital, busses run from there all day and night, but you really need to pay attention to exactly where those buses go and stick to those neightborhoods. Roland Park could be a little tough shuttle wise from there. Patterson Park could work for you though since it is an urban walkable neighborhood closer to the medical campus. Just be sure you are zoned for their charter.
If you want, send me a PM, I think I still have a map of the Baltimore school zones on my home computer. That was VERY helpful to me when I moved here because I could see which apartments where in the school zones I was interested in. I'll send it to you when I get home if you are interested.
JHU Medical campus is in the Eastern part of the city, so maybe you should live in the Eastern or Northern suburbs, in Baltimore County.
Avoid Baltimore City itself, where most schools are very poor.
The OP should consider whether living in the suburbs will require them to have 2 cars. Living in the city has the advantage that they can get by with only one car. The child may have to be driven to an ESL school, so then the husband could use JHU shuttle buses.
As others have said, there are decent schools in Baltimore City. Since the OP's family will only be in the city for 1 year and the child is only 7, he or she will not be hurt by being in a city school. If they were moving permanently to the USA, I would suggest moving to the suburbs.
The OP should consider whether living in the suburbs will require them to have 2 cars. Living in the city has the advantage that they can get by with only one car. The child may have to be driven to an ESL school, so then the husband could use JHU shuttle buses.
As others have said, there are decent schools in Baltimore City. Since the OP's family will only be in the city for 1 year and the child is only 7, he or she will not be hurt by being in a city school. If they were moving permanently to the USA, I would suggest moving to the suburbs.
Hi every one. Thank you so much. It's wonderful getting such great feedback. We'll look carefully at each one and get back to you after our preliminary house/school hunt. Most probably, since we'll be living in Baltimore for just an year or so, we'll try to get by with one car for my wife and kids - I'll take buses/metro...
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