Good area for my family. I have to live in city limits due to job. (neighborhood, private school)

[nana053]

Originally Posted by chet everett

The problem is that in schools with too many disruptive students that are far below the performance needed to be prepared for success in even the least selective colleges the atmosphere is not conducive to success. Over crowded classes with students working to improve their language skills are necessarily going to mean that there will be less opportunity for more capable students to really take challenging classes and be rewarded for their dilligence.

Sadly the majority of CPS' non-selective admissions high schools are little more than warehouses for kids that by their own poor choices and the misguided decisions of polticians who care more about having a locked-in underclass constituency will never have a chance at even the least selective colleges. The further missteps of adults that do not recognize the necessity of mastering English lie in stark contrast to other immigrants that well know the hopelessness of remaining unassimilated at least in one's schooling. I know dozens of caring parents who make the time to ensure their kids preserve fluency in their native languages / respect their cultural heritage through weekend classes in Cantonese, Greek, Ukranian, Korean, Polish, etc. These are the polar opposite of the philosophy of those that fail recognize the ACT / SAT / AP tests are not adminsitered in other than English...

It is for precisely these reasons that my colleagues that worked as CPS teachers themselves tried to so hard to ensure their own kids were tapped for selective admissions high schools. Failing that they wisely decided that a private school was absolutely worth the investment.

But, the kids were actually tracked. I did NOT have any disruptive kids in my honors classes or AP classes. The disruptive kids at Juarez tended to drop out in Freshman year as they were 16 at that point. Or they just stayed enrolled, but didn't come to school or to class.

[4122]

Have you seen Taft's ISAT scores for the 7th and 8th graders? They're really good.
TAFT HIGH SCHOOL | School Snapshot

[jonnynonos]

To answer the ethnic neighborhood question: obviously there is a fairly large Chinese community in Chinatown.

Beyond that, of the ethnicities you listed, there are still a fair, though rapidly diminishing, amount of Poles on the NW side. There is indeed a fair number of Ukranians in Ukranian village--maybe 2,000/2,500. And there are about 5,000 Irish in Canaryville.

The Italian neighborhoods mostly just have Italian restaurants and groceries with Italian populations of less than 10 percent.

If I were you I would look on the far northwest side.

What are the schools like in Sauganash? That seems pretty idyllic/suburban.

Most of the public schools are rough.

You might look into Bridgeport or even Canaryville but I think most the white kids go to Catholic schools like Mt Carmel.

[jonnynonos]

Ok I just looked, Sauganash is Taft. I would guess that magnet schools aside that is as good as it gets in CPS...by a mile.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by nana053

But, the kids were actually tracked. I did NOT have any disruptive kids in my honors classes or AP classes. The disruptive kids at Juarez tended to drop out in Freshman year as they were 16 at that point. Or they just stayed enrolled, but didn't come to school or to class.

In the most recent set of info the drop out rate is remarkably low. Truancy does seem to be a problem, with 57%+ of the kids still in the chronic category. Disturbingly the graduation rate is over 80%, which tells me these kids that don't show up are still getting "sent along" where their lack of skills or even the habits to even show up, likely doom them to permanent underclass status -- JUAREZ COMMUNITY ACADEMY HS: Student Characteristics


Btw the seventh & eight graders at Taft are in the selective admissions program. And don't kid yourself -- the affluent residents of Saugansh are not making up the majority of Taft's overwhelmingly low-income student body. These folks that come from the ranks of "brass hat" fire department leadership and the "white shirt" lieutenants, captains and commanders from the CPD also overwhelmingly send their kids to Loyola Academy and other pricey high schools.

[baileyvpotter]

Originally Posted by jonnynonos

Beyond that, of the ethnicities you listed, there are still a fair, though rapidly diminishing, amount of Poles on the NW side. There is indeed a fair number of Ukranians in Ukranian village--maybe 2,000/2,500. And there are about 5,000 Irish in Canaryville.

The Italian neighborhoods mostly just have Italian restaurants and groceries with Italian populations of less than 10 percent.

If I were you I would look on the far northwest side.

Saw the stats about UV but those are a few years old. There are a few older posts about UV that
mentioned that there were very few Ukrainians left. If someone is talking about 2000-2500 Ukrainian
residents, it's probably first-third generations & immigrants who go to UV for mass as well as other
Ukrainian events. I doubt new immigrants (unlike 20 years ago) can afford the area. Just googling
Chicago Ave and Oakely, anyone who remembers the area can see how someone would be a bit
bewildered that it was a large Eastern European area vs other cities (NY, Philly, and Toronto).

Note about below: perfect storm and Alderman J. Granato
Chicago Reader | Ukrainian Village and East Village | Eastern Europeans, Latinos, artists, and aldermen have left their mark on the area real estate agents are calling “the new Lincoln Park.”

Luxury
Ukrainian Village neighborhood guide - Chicago neighborhoods
Flynn
Curbed Chicago: Ukrainian Village Archives

Similar regarding the Italian neighborhood by Circle Campus as well.

[jonnynonos]

Originally Posted by baileyvpotter

Saw the stats about UV but those are a few years old. There are a few older posts about UV that
mentioned that there were very few Ukrainians left. If someone is talking about 2000-2500 Ukrainian
residents, it's probably first-third generations & immigrants who go to UV for mass as well as other
Ukrainian events. I doubt new immigrants (unlike 20 years ago) can afford the area. Just googling
Chicago Ave and Oakely, anyone who remembers the area can see how someone would be a bit
bewildered that it was a large Eastern European area vs other cities (NY, Philly, and Toronto).

Note about below: perfect storm and Alderman J. Granato
Chicago Reader | Ukrainian Village and East Village | Eastern Europeans, Latinos, artists, and aldermen have left their mark on the area real estate agents are calling “the new Lincoln Park.”

Luxury
Ukrainian Village neighborhood guide - Chicago neighborhoods
Flynn
Curbed Chicago: Ukrainian Village Archives

Similar regarding the Italian neighborhood by Circle Campus as well.

That figure was an estimate froma Ukranian lady who lives there. I agree it is potentially lower.

You do see a surprising number of a Ukranian flags hanging from houses around the Patch though.

[jonnynonos]

Originally Posted by chet everett

In the most recent set of info the drop out rate is remarkably low. Truancy does seem to be a problem, with 57%+ of the kids still in the chronic category. Disturbingly the graduation rate is over 80%, which tells me these kids that don't show up are still getting "sent along" where their lack of skills or even the habits to even show up, likely doom them to permanent underclass status -- JUAREZ COMMUNITY ACADEMY HS: Student Characteristics


Btw the seventh & eight graders at Taft are in the selective admissions program. And don't kid yourself -- the affluent residents of Saugansh are not making up the majority of Taft's overwhelmingly low-income student body. These folks that come from the ranks of "brass hat" fire department leadership and the "white shirt" lieutenants, captains and commanders from the CPD also overwhelmingly send their kids to Loyola Academy and other pricey high schools.

I agree with you. Still, Taft is likely the best non magnet CPS hs. Not saying it's great; just that it's likely the best.

[Attrill]

I haven't had to deal with a kid in CPS high schools yet, but I have heard good things from a teacher who worked at Taft, and it has a decent reputation. I started an internship program for HS students at a company I used to work for and worked with a few students from different CPS high schools through that. Most of the students came from Senn, Von Steuben, and Lakeview. All of them were smart and hardworking, and ended up getting into good colleges after graduation (i.e. Illinois, Purdue, and Wisconsin). I think those three schools would also be worth checking out as well. It is also worth checking out what your possibilities are through Magnet and SEES admissions, while it may not work it would be foolish not to try it. Friends with kids in CPS high schools have pretty much the same opinions that nana053 expressed above.

I grew up in and around Boston as well, and there is nowhere near the Italian cultural presence in Chicago as there is in Boston or NYC. Chicago has a much larger Eastern European and Mexican/Central American population. That said, Chicago is a much larger city than Boston and while there is nothing like the North End you can still find many Italian delis, old school restaurants, congregations, etc. If you need to find something specifically Italian in Chicago you absolutely can, it just won't be in one specific area.

If you're comfortable in Staten Island the NW side should be fine for you, and you should be able to find a house to rent in your price range (probably less). Much of the SW side could work as well, but transportation can be harder from much of the SW side (obviously depending on where you'll be working). Don't worry about any NYC bias towards your kids, there's no rivalry between Chicago and NYC that could even compare to the one that exists between Boston and NYC.

[chet everett]

The OP needs data. While school digger is not my favorite site they do post some stats that allow for comparisons. Taft High School in Chicago IL - SchoolDigger.com

In 2014 Taft was ranked worse than 65.7% of Illinios high schools. It also ranked 20 of 99 ranked Chicago high schools.

Hardly the kind of school anyone would honestly say "good things about" unless their basis of comparison is to places that are so violent / dysfunctional that they're a ticket to prison...

I do not disagree that the relative affordability of the NW side is not bad for folks that are forced to live in the city but a big part of that savings from affordability is typically spent by city workers on private schools. The OP needs to understand that the continued lies that Chicago's Mayor Rahm Emanuel have really hardened some folks. The people paid to say good things about CPS lie is sharp contrast to ordinary parents and unbiased rankings that show the real horror of how bad they are. Think about 65.7% rating -- that is a weak "D" in letter grades!