Is Hopkins Really That Bad? (Minneapolis, St. Paul: apartment, homes, public schools)

[MN2]

Hopkins does indeed have a smaller town feeling, compared with "anywhere USA" suburbs such as Eden Prairie, Woodbury, or Maple Grove.

However, Hopkins is definitely lower-middle class, particularly compared with surrounding suburbs. The areas north of Mainstreet are nicer than the areas south of Mainstreet, which have more lower-income/Section 8 apartments and more crime.

Hopkins is relatively safe, compared with Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, and north Minneapolis.

[uptown_urbanist]

I love Hopkins, at least the area right around Mainstreet. If I had to live in a local suburb, within close proximity to Mainstreet would be top of my list. You can walk to everything: grocery store, library, hardware store, a very nice arts center with theater space, and lots and lots of restaurants of all types. There's a nice farmer's market in the summer, too.

[jackson8112]

Sorry to revive such an old thread - but it's uncanny how similar my situation is. We're renting in Eden Prairie because of a job relocation in Bloomington and really missing our old city. I miss sidewalks and local businesses. We'd love to live in St. Paul, but don't want the commute hassle. We're looking at St. Louis Park and Hopkins, but we're primarily concerned about the schools: Alice Smith Elementary in particular looks like it's not doing so hot. Everyone says Hopkins schools are ok - but School Digger and Great Schools have them as not so great. I'm relatively new to the whole searching for schools thing - so are these sites off base?

[TxTnVtMn]

Originally Posted by jackson8112

Everyone says Hopkins schools are ok - but School Digger and Great Schools have them as not so great. I'm relatively new to the whole searching for schools thing - so are these sites off base?

That would not surprise me about Alice Smith, as it probably pulls from some of the more low income neighborhoods in the district. Generally, the western half of the Hopkins district is in a higher socioeconomic range. Elementary schools such as Glen Lake and Gatewood might be quite different than Alice Smith.

I reside in the district, though my children are in Catholic school. Our neighbors with kids at Glen Lake are quite satisfied.

At the High School level, Hopkins is a tick below Edina, Minnetonka, or Wayzata, but does have a lot of successful sports and activities and good academic opportunities at the top end. It is a also a more genuinely diverse high school than many others in the western suburbs (i.e. neither lily white nor majority-minority).

[Chester Burnett]

We prefer to live in the city but my wife and I sometimes go to Hopkins to shop the antique stores and have lunch. We live in North Minneapolis and it takes less than fifteen minutes to drive to Hopkins. It has a quaint small town feel for being so close to the city. If we were going to live in the 'burbs I'd consider it.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by jackson8112

Sorry to revive such an old thread - but it's uncanny how similar my situation is. We're renting in Eden Prairie because of a job relocation in Bloomington and really missing our old city. I miss sidewalks and local businesses. We'd love to live in St. Paul, but don't want the commute hassle. We're looking at St. Louis Park and Hopkins, but we're primarily concerned about the schools: Alice Smith Elementary in particular looks like it's not doing so hot. Everyone says Hopkins schools are ok - but School Digger and Great Schools have them as not so great. I'm relatively new to the whole searching for schools thing - so are these sites off base?

Keep in mind that this is based of a comparison of schools in MN, not nationally. So, it looks like the "worst" schools in the Hopkins SD are still average by MN standards, which is likely better than most nationally. Hopkins Public School District - USA.comâ„¢


You can also view information on the map by census tract, census block group, etc.

[Mason3000]

Originally Posted by ChibiLesley

I moved here a little over a year ago, with my husband and now nearly 4 year old son. We were in a time crunch, my husband was starting a new job in eastern Bloomington (The Nerdery) and we ended up renting a house in Eden Prairie. Eden Prairie is nice, but I feel isolated. I miss being able to walk to a store or cafe. A friend of mine recently moved to Hopkins and thinks it's great, with all the shops and restaurants and walking trails. So I got really excited about it. But I've seen people here say that they wouldn't want to live there. Why is that, exactly? As far as I can tell, there is no other suburb, within a reasonable commute to eastern Bloomington, that offers a downtown area like that. Am I missing something?

Hopkins is not a traditional suburb, it's a town. In the old days of the railroads, Hopkins was the first town/stop West of Minneapolis. Thus is has the main street and townie feel.

There's absolutely nothing "that bad" about Hopkins. It's close to city, has easy highway access, has good schools, good sports for kids, the children's theater (forget the actual name) for kids who are into that, the discount movie theater, which is great for families on a budget and later down the road your teenagers will walk there on Friday nights to see movies, etc. plenty of shops, restaurants and it's all on a reasonable budget. It's not for everyone. Some people prefer the Eden Prairie vibe. Some people prefer the inner-city vibe. Hopkins is a nice blend of the two, imo.

[Mason3000]

Originally Posted by jackson8112

Sorry to revive such an old thread - but it's uncanny how similar my situation is. We're renting in Eden Prairie because of a job relocation in Bloomington and really missing our old city. I miss sidewalks and local businesses. We'd love to live in St. Paul, but don't want the commute hassle. We're looking at St. Louis Park and Hopkins, but we're primarily concerned about the schools: Alice Smith Elementary in particular looks like it's not doing so hot. Everyone says Hopkins schools are ok - but School Digger and Great Schools have them as not so great. I'm relatively new to the whole searching for schools thing - so are these sites off base?

Pardon me for being blunt, but the difference between a '10' and a '6' on GreatSchools is basically the number of low income Black kids they have. GreatSchools used to show you the test scores they base their ratings on by demographics. A school in Hopkins would likely have 65% White students scoring '9's and '10's on standardized testing, while the poor Blacks score '2's and '3's, bringing the overall ranking down to a '5' or a '6'. They stopped showing those test scores by demographics for some reason a year or two back, but that's the difference between a '6' and a '10' on GreatSchools. Now, if you're a low income Black family this should concern you, but if you're not, your kids are most likely to end up in the kids scoring '9's and '10's at that school.

[Glenfield]

Originally Posted by Mason3000

Pardon me for being blunt, but the difference between a '10' and a '6' on GreatSchools is basically the number of low income Black kids they have. GreatSchools used to show you the test scores they base their ratings on by demographics. A school in Hopkins would likely have 65% White students scoring '9's and '10's on standardized testing, while the poor Blacks score '2's and '3's, bringing the overall ranking down to a '5' or a '6'. They stopped showing those test scores by demographics for some reason a year or two back, but that's the difference between a '6' and a '10' on GreatSchools. Now, if you're a low income Black family this should concern you, but if you're not, your kids are most likely to end up in the kids scoring '9's and '10's at that school.

In this study, researchers were able to predict school test scores using just three demographic variables from US Census data (a) percentage of families in a community with income of $200,000 a year, (b) percentage of people in a community in poverty, and (c) percentage of people in a community with bachelor’s degrees. Scores go down when the percentage of poor and uneducated people increases, and scores increase when there are more wealthy and educated people.

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/...6.2016.1252304

[Mason3000]

Originally Posted by Glenfield

In this study, researchers were able to predict school test scores using just three demographic variables from US Census data (a) percentage of families in a community with income of $200,000 a year, (b) percentage of people in a community in poverty, and (c) percentage of people in a community with bachelor’s degrees. Scores go down when the percentage of poor and uneducated people increases, and scores increase when there are more wealthy and educated people.

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/...6.2016.1252304

Correct. You could actually eliminate all three data points and substitute the % of students living bin a single parent home and get the same results. My opinion is that the difference in education between a '10' and a '6' for White kids coming from a two parent home where both parents work is negligible. Those kids are going to be '9's and '10's on standardized tests at either school and their friends will be too. I don't believe for one second the kids at Eden Prairie are being prepared for college better than the kids at Hopkins. Hopkins just has more low income Black students due to it's proximity to the city.