Moving to Newburyport with High Schooler? (Boston, Cambridge: transfer, middle school, living in)

[Idontwanttocheckmymessage]

Hello,

Has anyone here recently moved to Newburyport with a teenager, or do you have a current High Schooler in town? I am interested in hearing your thoughts about how open the students are to kids who are new to the school. My daughter will be a new freshman next year at the High School and I want to hear a bit about how difficult/easy it might be for her to transition socially, making friends, etc. I'm not concerned about her academically, more about the social experience. We will be moving from a metro-west Boston suburb where my daughter is having a pretty good junior high experience overall. I would describe her school as large and academically intense, but sheltered and generally open and friendly. How might Newburyport HS compare? .

I do understand that most of the kids in Newburyport HS will already know each other from the junior high and elementary schools, but I think that there are other feeder schools (a Catholic school and Charter school) so maybe there will be a number of kids in the same boat? How open are the kids to outsiders in general? Do you have any specific suggestions that might help to ease the transition? She would like to continue as a cheerleader in the high school, if anyone is familiar with the program.

I greatly appreciate any feedback.

Thanks!

[alidmc]

I don't have any experience with Newburyport Public Schools, but I transferred my daughter when she entered high school. It is smallish town with only one middle school, like Newburyport, so we were a bit worried about the transition.
Everything went smoothly. While there were many students who knew each other from elementary or middle school, there were still many who transferred from private schools or from other districts.
She had no trouble meeting new friends, and she is not a terribly outgoing kid. The fact that your daughter will be involved in activities, like cheerleading, should make it even easier for her to meet people.

[valleygirl789]

I live one town over from NBPT.

My kids have played both football and baseball against them and I have nothing but good thing to say about the coaches, parents and athletes. They are polite, kind, friendly and welcoming which makes it hard for me to see them NOT extending the same courtesy to a new student. Good luck with your move!

[Idontwanttocheckmymessage]

Thank you very much for your helpful replies!

[Boston_Burbs]

Newburyport has a parish Elementary school but the closest catholic high schools are over a half hour away so I bet there are some new 9th graders.

[Idontwanttocheckmymessage]

Just circling back with an update. We moved to Newburyport mid-summer and it's been great for our daughter so far. Thank goodness! She had no problems making friends as a 9th grader entering the HS when everyone in the grade is basically the "new kid." There are 3 feeder schools in town that end at 8th grade (a public middle, a catholic and a charter school), which helped a lot I think. She didn't end up sticking with cheerleading, though it introduced her to girls over the summer who became familiar faces when school started. She decided to quit before the season started, but ended up clicking more with the girls that she met in her classes - all friendly, smart and sweet. BTW, I find NBPT to be one of the friendliest communities I have ever lived in, in terms of people saying hello when out and about, chatting with strangers, neighborly welcomes, etc. My husband and I haven't made too many real friends yet, but I think we will with time. So far I have no regrets about relocating here and I thank everyone again for their input!

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by Idontwanttocheckmymessage

Just circling back with an update. We moved to Newburyport mid-summer and it's been great for our daughter so far. Thank goodness! She had no problems making friends as a 9th grader entering the HS when everyone in the grade is basically the "new kid." There are 3 feeder schools in town that end at 8th grade (a public middle, a catholic and a charter school), which helped a lot I think. She didn't end up sticking with cheerleading, though it introduced her to girls over the summer who became familiar faces when school started. She decided to quit before the season started, but ended up clicking more with the girls that she met in her classes - all friendly, smart and sweet. BTW, I find NBPT to be one of the friendliest communities I have ever lived in, in terms of people saying hello when out and about, chatting with strangers, neighborly welcomes, etc. My husband and I haven't made too many real friends yet, but I think we will with time. So far I gave no regrets about relocating here and I thank everyone again for their input!

Thanks for circling back! So few people do and we certainly love to hear the success stories.

Can I just ask where in Metrowest you moved out of?

[mwj119]

Goodness do I love Newburyport. We dream about the day we can move there- We were simply too afraid of the commute back to the MetroWest to make the jump.

Glad it's going well!

[Idontwanttocheckmymessage]

Thank you!!

@MikePRU, our family lived in Acton for 16 years before moving to NBPT. We lived in Hingham as newlyweds for a few years before Acton, and before that we met while living in Brookline and Cambridge. Looking back, each location was a good fit for that specific time of our lives.

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by Idontwanttocheckmymessage

Thank you!!

@MikePRU, our family lived in Acton for 16 years before moving to NBPT. We lived in Hingham as newlyweds for a few years before Acton, and before that we met while living in Brookline and Cambridge. Looking back, each location was a good fit for that specific time of our lives.

Not to be overly direct, but I'm guessing there was a specific need to leave Acton before high school began? Not that Newburyport High School is a slouch by any means, but you could argue that Acton Boxborough is one of the best public schools in New England.

Being from the Acton area, I totally understand why you'd want to live in Newburyport. Acton in particular is a nice community, perfect for a family- No more, no less IMO.