El Paso - good fit for us? Best family locations? (Socorro: 2014, crime rate)

[mit2014]

A possible job opportunity has popped up for my husband with an El Paso law firm that is downtown. El Paso has not been on our radar previously, so I'm trying to do some basic investigation about whether it could be a good fit for our family. We would definitely visit before making a decision.

Depending on his pay, I would possibly stay home with our kids. We have two children (younger than preschool age), so in the next few years we would be concerned with finding a good elementary school. I know El Paso public schools get mixed reviews, but public schools would be our first choice. We would consider private schools if (1) we could afford it at the time for both kids, and (2) it was substantially better than the public school options. We currently live in the Texas panhandle and I grew up in NM, but have never been to El Paso. We both understand and speak a little Spanish and would be happy to learn more, but we are by no means fluent. We consider our children becoming bilingual a great benefit to them. Like all parents, we want to raise happy, healthy kids, give them a good education, and provide them a safe place to grow up. We are pretty active people, love food, traveling. Though we've both spent time in bigger areas, like DFW, we don't care to be in super urban area. My husband would happily live in the middle of no where if he had his choice.

With that backdrop, does El Paso sound like it might be a good fit or not?

What neighborhoods would you recommend considering for a family like us?

Any specific public or private elementary recommendations would be great as well. I've looked at some of the school data websites, but TAKS scores only tell you so much.

[katzpaw]

The westside will give less culture shock, has higher incomes, more professionals, and higher property values. Check out public elementary schools that feed the Franklin and Coronado high schools. We were very happy with our kid's public education in the Franklin HS area. Note that the newer homes (more or less north of Helen of Troy) on the far west side are in the Canutillo School District - they feed into a good elementary school but it's not close.

The non-religious Burnham Wood charter schools on the westside also have a good reputation.
El Paso Education Initiative, Inc (Howard Burnham Elementary School & DaVinci School for Science & the Arts)

[Violet West]

agree with Katzpaw for most. Westside would be an easier commute--don't go East for that. I'm inclined to think the schools are terrible -- but I think all schools are terrible now, so don't read too much into that. YOu might also look at the Upper Valley where they've built some nice walking trails down Artcraft road.

El Paso is a good family town. It is not a great "foodie" town (unless you count Mexican food). Travel -- well, to get anywhere from here, you have to travel!

[unnativeelpasoan]

Originally Posted by Violet West

Travel -- well, to get anywhere from here, you have to travel!

Ha! No kidding.

[unnativeelpasoan]

Originally Posted by mit2014

A possible job opportunity has popped up for my husband with an El Paso law firm that is downtown. El Paso has not been on our radar previously, so I'm trying to do some basic investigation about whether it could be a good fit for our family. We would definitely visit before making a decision.

Depending on his pay, I would possibly stay home with our kids. We have two children (younger than preschool age), so in the next few years we would be concerned with finding a good elementary school. I know El Paso public schools get mixed reviews, but public schools would be our first choice. We would consider private schools if (1) we could afford it at the time for both kids, and (2) it was substantially better than the public school options. We currently live in the Texas panhandle and I grew up in NM, but have never been to El Paso. We both understand and speak a little Spanish and would be happy to learn more, but we are by no means fluent. We consider our children becoming bilingual a great benefit to them. Like all parents, we want to raise happy, healthy kids, give them a good education, and provide them a safe place to grow up. We are pretty active people, love food, traveling. Though we've both spent time in bigger areas, like DFW, we don't care to be in super urban area. My husband would happily live in the middle of no where if he had his choice.

With that backdrop, does El Paso sound like it might be a good fit or not?

What neighborhoods would you recommend considering for a family like us?

Any specific public or private elementary recommendations would be great as well. I've looked at some of the school data websites, but TAKS scores only tell you so much.

It sounds like it might be a good fit. I wouldn't recommend El Paso to single people, but for families that is another story. El Paso is very family friendly. If you currently live in the Panhadle and grew up in NM, then you are probably already used to a dry climate. You really don't need to speak Spanish to live here, so that shouldn't be a problem, but it would still be a good place for your kids to learn Spanish. El Paso has a lot lower crime rate than most other cities its size, so that's good. I think most of the private schools here are Catholic (but someone correct me if I'm wrong about that). I agree with Violet West that El Paso isn't what you'd call a "foodie" city, but I would imagine there are much more food options here than anywhere in the Panhandle. There are hiking and biking trails here that you may enjoy and the weather is really good for outdoor activities for most of the year (just be sure to wear your sunscreen!). I also agree with Violet West and katspaw that you would probably want to look at the Westside and Upper Valley areas. Since your husband would like to live "in the middle of nowhere" you might also want to look just outside of town near the NM border - or even Santa Teresa, NM.

[malamute]

Since you want your kids to learn a lot of Spanish, El Paso would be a very good fit, but some parts of the westside aren't as Spanish speaking as some areas, you might want to look at the schools where the TAKS is given in Spanish for them to have more Spanish language immersion.

[joqua]

Mesita Elementary school has long been highly rated and it has been completely rebuilt in recent years so it's now a very "new old school." Kern Place, while an older neighborhood, is still a very desirable one with a variety of housing choices. It is also one of the more family-friendly neighborhoods.

[Violet West]

Malamute: I do not believe the TAKS tests are given in Spanish -- problems with Spanish speaking students are at the root of all the school corruption scandals.

To the OP: FYI: If you search the news, you will find a lot of "corruption" articles regarding the El Paso, Socorro, Ysleta, and Canutillo school districts. The basic problem was that certain school officials tried to move the Spanish speaking high schoolers around in order to get around the federally mandated testing requirements, so all those Spanish only students wouldn't crash their test results and make the schools ineligible for federal money.

This is an administration and testing strategy fail, not necessarily a basic instruction level fail for most students.

[TexasCCW]

There are many good schools and properties other than the westside. Eastwood and Burges are in great neighborhoods and houses are priced well in the area. I would definitely recommend that you visit and see a few homes in areas that peak your interest. Good luck and please keep us posted on your journey!

[Violet West]

TexasCCW is correct. however, I gotta say -- "pique" honey; "pique"