3 Qs: schools and town services/park and rec (Boston, Quincy: house, buy)

[mcmanatl]

Back again, I am headed up to Mass next week to look around at towns and try to narrow down my list. Relatice to any of the towns I have listed below, I have two questions I'd like to get input on:

1) any particular catholic elementaries well thougth of? I am familiar with most the highschools, but am curious if any elementaries stand out above the others?

2) are there other private non-catholic schools I should be aware of with tuition 10K or less (am assuming not as I know most are much higher, but in case I'm discounting with bad knowledge)

3) any particular town stand out with regard to good town services? by this I mean mostly related to park and rec stuff - town pool, broad range of activites for kids etc.

Towns/General Area:

Needham/Newton
Higham
Quincy
Sharon
Westwood
Dedham
West Roxbury

Also, if there are any great schools/rec depts that you think you should mention beyond these areas, please feel free to weigh in. I appreciate all the help as I'm very much on the fence still on a lot of other factors in considering these areas.

[495neighbor]

These towns have reputable Ys with activities for all: West Roxbury, Sharon (actually Stoughton on Sharon border) and Quincy (soon to be built).

[mcmanatl]

Thank you! Just the kind of informationt that is helpful to me.

[SpringMom3]

Some of the towns you picked have very strong public schools and others I would do private if you chose them.

Needham/Newton, Higham, Sharon, Westwood all have great public schools. For the others, I would do private. If we found good private schools for under 10k, i would choose that over the public schools and buy a bigger house in a cheaper town, but I haven't found that yet myself so I will watch this post.

[mcmanatl]

Thanks! I agree on the private school under 10K approach - there is only one that fits that bill where I currently live, but you never know if you don't ask - they don't exactly advertise it broadly.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by mcmanatl

Thanks! I agree on the private school under 10K approach - there is only one that fits that bill where I currently live, but you never know if you don't ask - they don't exactly advertise it broadly.

People who move here from out of state often remark to me that private school is more expensive here than in some other states. I would say that's probably due to the fact that many of the public schools are so good. So, there's not as much demand for private schooling and therefore less competition and less downward pressure on pricing.

As far as Catholic schools . . . I know a lot of people who live in Needham who send their kids to St. Joe's if they're looking for a Catholic school education. Most of the towns you've listed have great parks & rec departments that offer a lot of programs as well.

[mcmanatl]

Thanks MikePRU - actually, tuition for private looks exactly on par with where I am, and in some cases a tad lower though I do know the public schools there are strong. You say most of the towns have great park and rec depts - is there any one you would say does not have that?

[Parsec]

I would say the public schools in Needham/Newton, Higham, Sharon and Westwood are BETTER than 99% of the Catholic schools in the Boston metro. If you're set on sending your children to Catholic school for the upbringing rather than academics, then I would recommend looking into one of the towns on your list with mediocre schools (Dedham, Quincy) in order to save a few hundred thousand on a house. Besides lower housing prices (mainly due to poor quality of public schools), Quincy has several things going for it that others in that list don't. They have a beach, several t stops on the red line and a variety of ethnic grocery stores and restaurants.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by mcmanatl

Thanks MikePRU - actually, tuition for private looks exactly on par with where I am, and in some cases a tad lower though I do know the public schools there are strong. You say most of the towns have great park and rec depts - is there any one you would say does not have that?

I'm only saying most because I'm not entirely familiar with all the locations on your list. I don't know a ton about Quincy for example as it's outside of my coverage area.

[mcmanatl]

Thanks a bunch for the perspective on Catholic vs. public in those towns. The reverse is true where I am - I do want them to go for the upbringing, but it's good to know that in those towns, I should think twice.