what are the prettiest, safest, best schools, best areas of Dallas

[BCB]

No, it does. Especially more than any other part of DFW.

Dallas Morning News also sees the similarities of Westlake and parts of the Mediterranean in this article.

Drive around the sun-drenched, rolling hills of this ritzy enclave and you almost feel as if you’ve been transported to Italy or the south of France. BMWs and Mercedes glide down small, winding roads and disappear into gated neighborhoods. Homes topped with clay-tile roofs glisten under skies dotted with puffy clouds. On patches of ranchland, cattle rest under trees.

...The green, rolling hills and old oak trees remind Biddle of Tuscany.

Napa:



Westlake:

[synchronicity]

Originally Posted by BCB

No, it does. Especially more than any other part of DFW.

Dallas Morning News also sees the similarities of Westlake and parts of the Mediterranean in this article.

Well, "more than any other part of DFW" is a low bar to clear.

Look, I generally like Westlake, live nearby and have driven through there fairly extensively. I also LOVE the Bay Area and have spent a fair share of time in NoCal, generally going north from SF through Napa/Marin up along 101 into redwood country.

No matter what the Dallas Morning News says or however many mediterranean-inspired "villas" are built there, Westlake bears very little resemblance to Napa. Or to Tuscany. I get that this is opinion, and we'll have to agree to disagree. But there's no way in heck I'd tell a NoCal relo "move to Westlake, it'll remind you of home".

(Closest fit in DFW I could think of would be the Highland Shores area of Highland Village, and even that would take a lot of caveats).

[Big G]

Originally Posted by BCB

.. both Westlake Academy/HPISD schools are nationally regarded.

Originally Posted by synchronicity

I'd also note that Westlake is TINY compared to PC, much less to West Plano or Southlake. If we're talking about kids at school, I believe Westlake Academy's entire enrollment K-12 is less than HPHS's graduating senior class. That may or may not be a factor for someone to consider.

I seriously doubt Westlake Academy is nationally regarded. There are about a dozen schools in DFW from which a kid could apply to the Ivies and have his HS instantly recognized.

Some charter school that graduates 2-3 dozen kids per year, tops, and whose best students generally transfer to a big-name private for 9-12? I don't think that's one of them.

[BCB]

Anybody else wanna criticize me?

[synchronicity]

Originally Posted by Big G

I seriously doubt Westlake Academy is nationally regarded. There are about a dozen schools in DFW from which a kid could apply to the Ivies and have his HS instantly recognized.

Some charter school that graduates 2-3 dozen kids per year, tops, and whose best students generally transfer to a big-name private for 9-12? I don't think that's one of them.

I have no idea how many of the best students transfer to big name privates, but I DO know that their average SAT/ACT scores rank second only to HPHS among non-magnet publics in all of DFW. Also, their first graduating senior class was only in 2010, so they've had a limited amount of time to establish a rep. That said per wikipedia (I know, it's Wikipedia, anyway...):

On May 23, 2010, Westlake Academy's first senior class of 24 students graduated. ...All of the graduates are currently attending college and have been offered $3.7 million worth of college scholarships.

I don't have a list of where they're attending, but my guess is that Westlake Academy is making a name for itself quickly. Again, I get that this is thanks to demographics - there's a lot of wealth and influence in that small town.