Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Thanks, What! I appreciate it. radraja, I think you missed the part of my post where I said my daughter's boyfriend from Seattle just seemed to be lacking in a lot of "general knowledge" type of stuff. I can't think of any examples, they haven't dated in a while. But if he is an example of the Seattle area schools, they're not all that! (And I know it's him, not the schools, but you get my drift, perhaps.)
There is enough crime in Seattle to keep their police force busy, make no mistake. It's no Utopia, or even close.
Thanks, What! I appreciate it. radraja, I think you missed the part of my post where I said my daughter's boyfriend from Seattle just seemed to be lacking in a lot of "general knowledge" type of stuff. I can't think of any examples, they haven't dated in a while. But if he is an example of the Seattle area schools, they're not all that! (And I know it's him, not the schools, but you get my drift, perhaps.)
There is enough crime in Seattle to keep their police force busy, make no mistake. It's no Utopia, or even close.
I saw your comments.
Like I said, I was just speaking from my own general observations. I never said the city was utopia; it's actually not my favorite city, and I personally wouldn't care to live there. I just perceived it on my visits to have some of the things the OP mentioned that people commonly ask for. It was just an offhand comment - I certainly wasn't trying to preach it as dogma or anything. Sorry if it offended?
of course Seattle has problems and of course it has its fair share of youth delinquency and problems- that's universal- but I agree with radraja, and having lived in Chicago, LA and now in Seattle, that the latter area has a lower likelihood of really bad things happening than in other parts of the country. Obviously Seattle has good schools & bad schools, bad neighborhoods & good neighborhoods, bad people & good people, but compared to many other parts of the US, Seattle for its size, has a generally more civilized way about it. It is safer than most other big metro areas in this country.
O.K. I live in New England in a suburb of Boston...doesn't get much more civilized than that or safer. The police are bored out of their minds here. Only petty crime or pranks by teenagers. The point I was hoping to make is don't be fooled by the safety stats, the 10's on Greatschool.com, the high income level and majority of non-minorities, the high amount of people with master's degrees.....no one's children are immune from the presence of drugs, alchohol and stupidity. Just pray that you have raised your children to stand strong from the influences of peer pressure and the need to do anything to "fit in" which is much stronger of a pull when your child is the new kid in school. This is my son's first year in high school and so far there has been one death, one critically injured still in intensive care since April, kid's busted for arson,selling Adderall on campus,pot sales on campus.....we live in one of the most historic places in America with a reputation of high academics,etc.....visting a place and seeing the outer shell as a tourist does not give you the complete story of what lies within...I only started this thread as a parent trying to give worthwhile advice to parent's looking for that "perfect place" to raise their kids. It doesn't exist.
See this is the point we are trying to make here. A super intellectual vibe does not deter their kids from doing drugs and drinking. I live in an area with Professor's from Harvard, MIT and BU to name a few live, along with CEO's of major corporations specializing in IT and defense and they live in million dollar plus homes. One of their kids smokes pot, drinks, and just got arrested for arson. Get it??
Yep. I get it. The problem is that many other people don't. To a great extent, parents have stopped being parents and developed the expectation that it's up to the schools to raise their kids. Bullspit. A kid's character begins and ends at home. The best school in the world can't turn around someone who never learned self-restraint and right vs wrong from their parents.
Here is an example of how kids go wrong..I won't say bad..just missguided. The mother of one of the boys caught setting fires near the school last week was upset and screaming mad at the mom of another kid that witnessed the act and actually told the police the truth of how the boys brought her to watch them set things on fire behind the local market in the woods, stole kerosene because her son didn't want to break his $100 bill, and then ran from the scene thinking they had put the fire out and didn't want to get caught. This mother was screaming at my friend because her daughter did the right thing, but by doing so, brought shame on the boy's family and put the blame of her son's behaviour on everyone else and now will have to put him in boarding school, boo hoo. He and his friend are suspended until formal sentencing. The girl was allowed to return to school because she came clean and did not actually participate in the act. Still stupid, but told the truth. More important to maintain the "public image" than admit your child has a serious problem and is calling out for help. The poor girl has many kids mad at her for "getting the boys in trouble" meaning...telling the truth.
Yep. I get it. The problem is that many other people don't. To a great extent, parents have stopped being parents and developed the expectation that it's up to the schools to raise their kids. Bullspit. A kid's character begins and ends at home. The best school in the world can't turn around someone who never learned self-restraint and right vs wrong from their parents.
Excellent.
Another thing that I don't think that has been mentioned is the fact that most areas that are known for their excellent public school systems are fringe suburbs, which means long commutes, auto dependency, and not much to do for recreation. There are exceptions of course, but I see this more often than not.
Another thing that I don't think that has been mentioned is the fact that most areas that are known for their excellent public school systems are fringe suburbs, which means long commutes, auto dependency, and not much to do for recreation. There are exceptions of course, but I see this more often than not.
Oh, please, not this again! There are dozens of threads to discuss the suburbs. However, Newsweek apparently just put out its list of top US high schools.
Now I happen to be one who thinks a lot of this stuff is a bunch of hooey. My kids did not attend one of these top high schools, yet got into good colleges and are doing well. However, many of the top high schools on this list in Colorado, a state I happen to know something about as I have sudied education in this state for many years as a memeber of the League of Women Voters (I have to add I'm speaking only for myself in this post, or I'll get in trouble with the League), are in the city of Denver or close-in suburbs. For example, East and George Washington Highs in Denver, Lakewood HS in Lakewood, an older, close-in suburb, Smoky Hill HS in Aurora, Cherry Creek HS in Greenwood Village, etc.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
