School District Opinion - Westerville vs. Dublin (Columbus, Cleveland: new home, buying)

[OhioGuy52]

Hello-

I hope I'm not "beating a dead horse" with this thread, but I wanted to see if I could get some feedback from people in the area on an issue I'm struggling with.

My wife and I have a 2 year old daughter, we've lived in Westerville for 6 years and really enjoy it here. We're beginning to think about which school district we would like our daughter (and hopefully more children down the road) to attend. I know it's very early to be thinking about this, but we want to be prepared for a home sale, buying a new home, etc. if we elect to change districts.

I've been doing a lot of research and asking a lot of questions to people in the area on the pro's/con's of the Westerville City School District versus the Dublin City School District (we want to put our kids in public schools). Having lived in Westerville for several years now, I'm relatively educated on what the district has to offer and how they operate. Overall, I know the district is solid and has a good reputation. The "Win-Win" program within the district concerns me to some degree, and the district is now talking about re-structuring it's attendance boundaries, which are already a little awkward (i.e., kids in the district that live south of IR 270 attend the furthestmost high school (Wville Central)).

As for Dublin schools, I know what the ODE Report Cards say about Dublin (and Westerville) and the results don't lie. From a statistical standpoint, the district is rock solid and I really admire it's consistency.

I'm just looking for thoughts from anyone who has been in a similar situation. My biggest question is, at the end of the day, are the districts really that much different? My wife doesn't see the need to possibly move out of Wville and into Dublin. My stance is that we're paying 2% property tax no matter where we live (we want to stay in the Northern Columbus suburbs), and I want to be sure our children are getting the most for that 2%. Dublin just seems to be so consistent, and I really think they operate their city and their school district a high level.

Anyways, anyone with any insight on this? Am I concerned over nothing? Any comments from anyone involved in either district would be much appreciated.

[cbusbuckeye]

I personally think it's splitting hairs when debating WVille-Dublin schools. Neither have difficulty passing levies to my knowledge, both are solid districts, and I think if there is no other reason to move besides school districts, that it's really not worth that hassle of going through the entire homebuying/selling process.

Just to confirm, the only reason you would be moving from Westerville would be change school districts?

[OhioGuy52]

Originally Posted by cbusbuckeye

I personally think it's splitting hairs when debating WVille-Dublin schools. Neither have difficulty passing levies to my knowledge, both are solid districts, and I think if there is no other reason to move besides school districts, that it's really not worth that hassle of going through the entire homebuying/selling process.

Just to confirm, the only reason you would be moving from Westerville would be change school districts?

Thanks for the response.

You are correct, the basis of my question was whether it was worth re-locating from Westerville to Dublin for the sole reason of changing school districts. Westerville did have an issue several years back passing an operating levy after the new high school was built, things were in disarray to some degree from what I understand, that was just before my wife and I moved to the area. The district now has a new superintendent, and from what I've heard about him, he's done an excellent job thus far.

It probably is splitting hairs, and everyone has different priorities when it comes to school districts and what they want for their children. One of my concerns with Westerville is the "Win-Win program" which is currently being discussed within the district. From what I understand, that program has created some level of frustration by some parents and faculty within the district. The "Win-Win" program is an annexation issue with students residing within the City of Columbus. So, Wville has a contingent of students who attend the school district but are not technically in Westerville. The district receives funds from the City of Columbus for bringing these students in.

Another concern of mine is the current structure in which the district places kids in each school. The district currently has kids passing 3 elementary/middle schools to attend a school on the other side of town. For example, families who live in the south end of the school district (Morse R./Cleveland Ave. area) attend Westerville Central HS, which is all the up in Genoa Twp. I understand why they do it, it just seems unneeded to me.

Is Dublin a part of the "Win-Win" program? Do they have these issues? They are always soo stable and consistent. At least it appears that way to me.

Thanks again for the response.

[cbusbuckeye]

Dublin is also involved in the "Win-Win" program, to what extent, I'm not sure. Here is the Dispatch article from last month:

Is schools pact still a Win-Win? | Columbus Dispatch Politics (http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/03/21/copy/is-schools-pact-still-a-win-win.html?sid=101 - broken link)

If I were in your situation, I feel like it's too much hassle to go through the entire homebuying/selling process just to change school districts, especially when both school districts are really good.

[OhioGuy52]

Originally Posted by cbusbuckeye

Dublin is also involved in the "Win-Win" program, to what extent, I'm not sure. Here is the Dispatch article from last month:

Is schools pact still a Win-Win? | Columbus Dispatch Politics (http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/03/21/copy/is-schools-pact-still-a-win-win.html?sid=101 - broken link)

If I were in your situation, I feel like it's too much hassle to go through the entire homebuying/selling process just to change school districts, especially when both school districts are really good.

Thanks CBUSBUCKEYE for the link, that is great info. I missed that article in the Dispatch. If you read the comments made on the article, and not to sound too abrasive, but virtually each person who lived in Westerville has commented on how the "Win-Win" program has had a negative affect on the school district. This is not first the time I've heard these same compaints. I find it odd that it's primarily the Westerville district that seems to be unhappy with the program.

I think you're right that it's a bit of a hassle to pick-up and move to another district, but we're going to move either way, simply for more space. The issue I have is time. Can we stay in Westerville and move whenever we're ready, knowing we're going to keep our children in Westerville City Schools, or do we need to look at moving in a couple of years so we have enough time to get into another district? Is is splitting hairs? Maybe, but those hairs being split could be the difference between being able to sleep at night with the district our kids are in or being concerned that we didn't make the BEST choice.

Either way, I really apprecite your feedback and the link to the article. You make some great points, and that's exactly what I'm looking for. An outside opinion.

[cbusbuckeye]

If you're going to move either way, I say it's definitely something worth looking into.

If your plan is to move before your child is in school either way, then I say definitely look into going outside Westerville and move somewhere that's going to give you that piece of mind that you're looking for.