Considering coming back full time, Thoughts on Whitter? (Boulder: middle schools, income)

[notatexan]

Greetings... I've been reading threads on schools and noticing little recommendation for Whittier. I realize the test scores aren't as high. We currently live out of state in a extremely competitive, success driven, affluent, somewhat snobby pressure cooker of a town, and while I of course prioritize strong academics I am looking for less of a mold your child/rat race kind of environment. We have a place in Boulder that we use for summers and visits, and I grew up there, so I have kept a decent understanding of the town, but school life is difficult to understand from the outside. My son is young now, but this move would be long term. Whittier seems the most diverse, are there rough kids (as far as Boulder goes anyway) or issues of bullying? Any thoughts on the community are appreciated.

[NorthDenverGirl]

If you haven't already check out greatschools.com although it is not the be all and end all it does give some good perspective on how the school is doing with all students including lower-income students.

I think any school will have bullies it is how the staff handle the bullies that will make the difference. I haven't heard a whole lot about bullying and Whittier myself. I know that Kohl elementary has had some issues, I have friends whose kids attend there.

[brown_dog_us]

Whittier is a solid school with a Boulder granola bent. It doesn't have the math/science focus that some of the South Boulder schools do, and that probably shows up in the test scores. I've never heard of any bullying at the school. My kids in middle and high school have a few friends from Whittier and those kids do fine in school.

The problem is middle school. The kids from Whittier are zoned for Casey Middle and it leaves a bit to be desired. A lot of the Whittier kids choice into other middle schools or go to a private school.