Middle and High schools-Mountain Brook, Hoover, Homewood Private (Valley, Brookwood: fit in, 2014)

[emmaw]

Hi Again,

I found this forum very helpful prior to moving here 5 years ago from PA. We live in Ross Bridge in Hoover. My kids attend Deer Valley Elem. I am very happy with this school and have been deeply involved. It has changed to K-4 recently so my daughter will be entering her last year. Her next stop will be Brocks Gap intermediate, then Bumpus and Hoover High. My son is 3 yrs behind.

We are a multi-racial family (asian and caucasian) and we like the diversity of Hoover. However, the extreme growth of this area has caused a financial burden on the the school district. Recently there was much uproar over the possible ending of busing for this 2014-15 school year. I am concerned how this district will deal with growth as there are no current plans for new schools that I am aware of.

My husband and I are pretty sure we don't want our kids in the Hoover High school but we have several years before thats an issue. Its large and its hyper focus on football is a concern. I am a little worried about the middle schools. If anyone has input on Brocks or Bumpus, let me know.

Anyway, it has gotten me thinking on High schools in the area. Not sure if we could afford private school, but want to learn about it. THoughts on Highlands, Altamont, any others that do middle and High school? What about AFFA? I have a dancer... loves ballet.

Or should we consider moving into a different district like Mt Brook. Affording a house there is another issue. Certainly a good school district, but would my half-Asian kids fit in? Would private school be any better? I really don't know anyone with kids there.

I know you can't prevent all bullying, but we hope for an accepting environment and strong academics.

[cpg35223]

You know, there are plenty of Asian kids in the Mountain Brook system. I don't think you have much to worry about aside from the run-of-the-mill stuff that every kid experiences. If your kid isn't getting hassled in Hoover, you probably wouldn't have that issue in Mountain Brook, either.

Here's my advice based on our own experience. If your daughter is entering 6th grade, keep her at Ross Bridge. The interesting thing about Mountain Brook is that each of the four elementary schools runs through Grade 6, and all of them feed into the middle school at Grade 7. If your daughter transfers into an elementary school in 6th grade, she might have difficulty fitting in simply because all the social circles have been pretty much set. 4th Grade? She'll be fine.

But when all the kids get to Grade 7, it's like a clean slate. All four schools dump into the same middle school and a lot of those tight-knit social circles disappear entirely.

The other thing? Get your daughter involved in activities. Fastest way I know for her to find friends.

As far as the various elementary schools in the Mountain Brook system, I'd recommend either Brookwood Forest or Cherokee Bend. Those are the schools where the parents are typically sane and grounded as opposed to Mountain Brook Elementary, where the parents have a fairly rigid caste system and Crestline, which is kind of the nouveau riche aspiring country club bunch.

[pennquaker09]

What CPG is saying is pretty much spot on. I attended elementary and middle school in Mountain Brook and high school in Hoover. I went to Mountain Brook Elementary during the 90s and I can tell you that nothing has changed much since then. I will say that I think a biracial kid these days would fare a lot better than when I was there. The parental factions kind of dictate whom the kids become friends with and the parents at MBE can be a lot to handle.

Mountain Brook Middle . . . again, I don't think your kids would have an issue at all. Asian kids tend to assimilate very well in MB.

I left the MB school system for Hoover for high school and I personally found it to be wonderful. Yes, there is a huge focus on football. But, to be honest, football is big at all of the schools. It's just a way of life in the South. I live in North Carolina now and even the private schools here have a huge focus on it. Academically, I don't think your kids will have ANY problems in Hoover. It's my understanding that some from both high schools are Ivy League bound this year.