West Plano Elementary Schools (Dallas, Grand Prairie: middle-class, renting, lawyers)

[VirtualM]

Hey friends - I am sure this has been posted before, but I've got a question. DH and I are currently renting in the Richardson Heights area. We love it, but the houses are a bit small for the price. The location is also no longer 'ideal.' We are looking to purchase a home sometime this spring/early summer, and I'm a planner, so I'm starting my research now. We started off looking around Far North Dallas to stay in Richardson schools, but the homes there are generally way out of our price range. I work in Far North Dallas in a building on the tollway (near Westgrove) and DH now works in Plano off of Legacy near the tollway. When we started renting in Richardson, he was working in downtown, so it made more sense to live near I-75. now, looking at home prices and our commute situation, West Plano is starting to look as though it makes the most sense as far as 'putting down roots.'

We are looking for 3-4 bedrooms in the $200-225k range and I've noticed that those homes do exist in Central Plano. My main question, though, is which elementary schools folks would recommend. Numbers and test scores only say so much about a school - I want to know about the sense of community, if parents are involved, how staff treats students, etc. My son is a decent student and he will be in 2nd grade next year. I'd love to land at a decent school so we could follow through at one place for a few years!

Edit**I realize I'm probably looking more in Plano Central than Plano West. Forgive me, I have no idea what the actual boundaries are. I can survive on the East side of Preston Rd. lol.

[Big G]

In general, the amount of "community" is going to be inversely proportional to the enrollment. In that regard, you'll be pleasantly surprised with the central PISD elementaries. Many of them are under 500 students, and some even under 400. That's an unintended, but beneficial, side effect of the "aging out" of those neighborhoods.

There are only a couple of outright clunkers in the central zone, and they can be easily ID'ed by their large enrollments.

[Obamney1]

I know from my children's and my nieces/nephews's experience that Brinker, Barksdale ,Matthews and Stinson are awesome PISD elementaries.

[VirtualM]

I know this thread has been dead for a bit, but I was wondering if anyone has experience with Weatherford Elementary? We found a house we really like with a great location for us, but it is zoned Weatherford. It looks okay on paper - but what is it like 'on the ground'? I'm going to visit this week, but any additional insight would be appreciated. (FWIW, I don't care if my kid goes to the top top school in all of the district - as a graduate off Grand Prairie High School myself, I'm a proponent of diversity both racially and socioeconomic in a school experience. I just want a good, safe school where my son can make friends and have a good learning experience, which we will supplement and be involved with all the way.)

[Big G]

AFAIK, it's a perfectly fine school. Wouldn't be my first choice, but if the house works for you, the school should, as well.

A few years back, I knew a Collin College prof whose kids went there. I assume an academic wouldn't put up with his kids getting a bad education.

In the spirit of disclosure - the school's Hispanic population is WAY higher than the district's average (I'd guess around 40-50%), and I presume the ESL %age is through the roof as well. I'd guess the black population is in line with the 10% or so of the district, and the Asian pop to be a lot less than the 20% district average. So you'll get a diverse school, but the mix will be different than at, say, Barksdale.

[VirtualM]

Here's the thing - we are an under $250k/house family, so I don't think we can even afford the diversity of Barksdale. I'm still trying to figure out what all of these people are doing that allow them to afford these $350k -$400k & up houses and why there are so many of them!

I suppose we will be happiest in a neighborhood where we don't feel completely strained to make the house payment! I just don't want to end up in a completely terrible school because we aren't extremely wealthy folks. We do okay and we have no debt and I'd like to keep it that way. We're trying to get a house that fits our needs (3/2, no pool, around 2k square feet) because I don't want to have to keep a bigger house clean/deal with pool maintenance/etc.) Anyway, thank you for the feedback; I know little about Plano, so I'm trying to get a wide sample of opinions on the area. It still makes the most sense location-wise (DH works in north Plano off of Legacy; I am in Far North Dallas off of the Tollway just south of Frankford.) Weatherford isn't my first choice, either, but I want to gauge if it should even be on the list.

[Bypass13]

Most of them are two income families and others are with one high income earner who can manage it all and more. I see lots of physicians, businessmen, mid/high level executives, lawyers etc.

[VirtualM]

We are also a two-income family. We know we are not in the higher paying industries (darn you, liberal arts higher educations!) and we both have steady jobs in our industries making what is considered a 'middle class income.' (Despite what many people think, $250k a year is NOT middle-class; that is upper-middle class and upper class.) But it just seems, in looking at homes, that a disproportionate number of homes are in these higher price ranges. Are there really *that* many doctors, lawyers, and CEOs out there?

Anyway, it's something I've always wondered. But back to the school discussion. That's really what I'm after here.

[Big G]

Again, if the house is a perfect fit for you and your bank account, go for it. Frankly, I salute you for planning within your budget. There have been a lot of prospective buyers drinking the Kool-Aid that you HAVE to buy in the rich area to get a decent school in PISD. I can assure you, it's not true.


If your budget were $150K, then Weatherford might be as good at it gets. But in the $200-$250K range, I think you can upgrade the school a notch or two. I'd look north of Weatherford, in the Haggard MS or Schimelpfenig MS attendance areas. 80% of Haggard is sub-$250K, and a fair number of areas in Schimelpfenig are as well. All 7 of the elementaries for those 2 schools are great, and all have houses in your price range, except maybe Mathews.

[PlanoGirl]

How's about Saigling elem? Small, close-knit school with a great rep. Houses definitely in your budget. Super convenient location.

Saigling Elementary School - Plano, Texas - TX - School overview