Emmaus vs Nazareth in terms of schools (Hellertown, North East: crime, homes)

[sherrymelody24]

I am a native Northern New Jersey girl, looking to relocate my family to PA. I have looked into North Easter PA around Hemlock Farms, BUT not sure i'll get used to not having a corner store to walk to. We do love the outdoors, but i don't think i'm ready to go that extreme. So i'm looking for something in the middle. As i continue to do research in PA, i have seen that Emmaus and Nazareth seem to be a bit more rural and it wouldn't be such a culture shock for me. The kids will adapt as they are 7 and under right now. On that note if anyone can give me a better idea of what i'm looking when it comes to Emmaus and Nazareth in terms to schools and crime and community and recreation. Thanks a bunch.

[Gettingouttahere]

Emmaus and Nazareth are both good school districts, close to the best in the region. Emmaus is East Penn School District. Nazareth is, well, Nazareth S.D.
Emmaus is said to have a great downtown vibe, walkability, etc. I believe Naz. has a similar setup, but I don't think it's as concentrated an area. Others with more familiarity can chime in.
I'd think either would be a good halfway point for you - community and local shops galore.

You'll need a car no matter where you go, if that wasn't clear to you...

[toobusytoday]

The biggest difference in the two school districts is the size of the high schools. East Penn has more than 1,000 more than Nazareth. Both districts are experiencing fast growth and I believe East Penn just raised their taxes to deal with that. Overcrowding should be looked at. Academic wise you can compare that here: School Performance Profile: Emmaus HS I prefer Emmaus's downtown, but unless you live there I'm not sure that matters a lot. Will you be living in the downtown area of either school district?

When we were looking at school districts, we chose a small district because we wanted our kids to feel at home quickly. With your young kids, that won't matter much but if you want to be involved in the schools, it might be easier to jump in to a parents group in Nazareth. I found that true in Southern Lehigh.

As to your rural comment, the only districts not what you consider "rural" are the city ones. Most of the school districts outlying the city's with the exception of Parkland, have small towns as their focal points - East Penn has two towns - Emmaus and Macungie. Southern Lehigh has Coopersburg, Saucon Valley has Hellertown, Nazareth has well, Nazareth, etc.

[sherrymelody24]

I also want my kids to feel at home pretty quickly. I come from a small town in northern NJ where the graduating class is more or less 100 students. I would still like that. A place where, when they are adults, they can come back home and still see their friends. A stable enviornment. We are going to look at some homes in Hemlock farms this weekend and then see some homes in Emmaus. Nazareth is a lil bit more pricey,although it seems inviting not sure we can afford Nazareth right now.

[Joy Division]

I live in Emmaus. Our downtown area is very cute, definitely walkable, and it's developing pretty nicely. The school district is high-quality, but the high school is becoming very crowded by your standards. I graduated in 2011 and there were about 700 students in my graduating class. I believe there is a new high school being constructed in Lower Macungie, so that should eventually alleviate some of the crowding problems. I also wouldn't exactly call Emmaus rural; it's pretty solidly suburban, but in a non-"McMansion-y" way.