African American Family Relocating from Houston

[Ellad]

That area is east of 71. It's on the border of Reynoldsburg.

[PerryMason614]

Originally Posted by Ellad

That area is east of 71. It's on the border of Reynoldsburg.

Yes, I know. I live near there.

[bgfalcons86]

Originally Posted by PerryMason614

If you are looking for a more "upscale" school, I'd be skeptical of anything on East Main Street. The black gentry tends to live in or around Berwick, along Sunbury Road, the Westerville area and mostly on the east side of town. For some reason, not many blacks on the west side which is where Hilliard is.

I just think it is more a matter of where the African-American community originally flourished and for Columbus, that was the east side. For that reason, the suburbs on the east side (Westerville, Gahanna and now Pickerington) have thriving middle-class, professional African-American communities, more so than Dublin, Hilliard, etc.

[jprince17]

Can anyone speak on the diversity of the schools for Dublin, Hilliard, etc? Does OH allow you to "bus" kids in to better schools if you live in an under performing school district?

[ohioflorida]

Originally Posted by jprince17

Can anyone speak on the diversity of the schools for Dublin, Hilliard, etc? Does OH allow you to "bus" kids in to better schools if you live in an under performing school district?

Dublin and Hilliard school districts are very diverse.

I am not aware of OH allowing this.- "bus" kids in to better schools if you live in an under performing school district.

[wrightflyer]

Originally Posted by jprince17

Can anyone speak on the diversity of the schools for Dublin, Hilliard, etc? Does OH allow you to "bus" kids in to better schools if you live in an under performing school district?

If you look at the demographic data provided within the district report cards issued, Hilliard is less diverse than Dublin. Dublin is about 70% white with the largest minority being Asians at roughly 20%.

Hilliard, by contrast, is about 74% white. It is probably a little more "diverse" in the sense that its minority makeup is about 7% each for Asian, Black and Hispanic, the latter of which is broken out in district data provided by the state.

If you want to discuss, per the original purpose of the thread, districts that perform well but have a higher African-American or Black concentration of students, the eastside suburban districts fare better in comparisons. Westerville, the largest of the three eastside suburban districts I would recommend, is just under 60% white. Blacks make up just under 24%. Then Hispanics and Asians each under 10%.

I would note, from a personal observation standpoint, that Westerville is probably more segregated as far as socioeconomic lines. The further north you are in the district, the wealthier you tend to be and in turn, probably more likely to be white. Westerville is a rather large district where these distinctions can be seen. But keep in mind that Westerville does carve the district attendance lines at the high school level. This likely reduces the dichotomy between more working class and middle class families (of any race/ethnicity) in the NE sides of Columbus that attend Westerville from the wealthier neighborhoods in Delaware County portions of Westerville Schools.

The other two districts on the east side would be Gahanna-Jefferson, which tallies about 60-65% white and 20% black. And Pickerington Local in Fairfield County. Its district is also about 60-65% white and around 20% black. Both are home to a large concentration of black professional families and tend to be relatively stable communities.

/Side Note: Also, keep in mind that many African-Americans that are immigrant children or children of immigrants (making them 1st Generation Americans), are from African countries that are majority or have a large minority of practicing Muslims. This is especially pronounced with the Somali diaspora population in Columbus, particularly the east and northeast sides. Like any immigrant group, they are hard working and (usually) keep their kids well-mannered, usually more so than some long time American families. I see more problems from white kids in my parents upper-middle class 500-home plat in Beavercreek than I do from kids I see around Gahanna, of which there are more diverse groups. Can kids be kids? Sure. But I seem to have less problems from the more socio-economically diverse area here in Columbus than in less diverse Greene County suburbs of Dayton. But I digress on kids and their differing behaviors./

Point is, I hope the OP would not have a problem living in a higher concentration black neighborhood or district despite that a number of people of color here are Muslim. Especially if they opt for a public school over a Christian-based school.

As for the quoted question, I would expect more diversity in suburbs within I-270 (with likely lower amounts of diversity in Bexley, UA and Grandview Heights). And most east side (east of I-71) suburbs will have more diversity than the west side (west of I-71) suburbs.

OP, I would recommend finding something in Clintonville or Worhtington if you want to go the route of private schools and being in a diverse community. Even better, with the Old Towne East and Kings-Bronzeville neighborhoods well into gentrification to the immediate east of downtown (along the Broad Street corridor all the way to Bexley), there should be decent options with varying commuting paths to the west side of town that would best fit what the OP is asking.

[beingm]

AA mom here (raised 2 sons in CBus, family of 4)
I loved Westerville-great neighborhoods, bike trails, descent diversity and great community.

[gotmilk83]

Any updates? Did you family move to any of the suggested areas? Curious to see if what has been written here matches up with what you've found to be true.