Moving to Minneapolis Fm Dallas Suburb looking for secular private school for 7th grade girl GT

[golfgal]

I'd start looking in Mahtomedi. Your price range should be reasonable there--probably not something on the lake but you should find something pretty easily there. It's one of the top rated districts in the nation, it's small, about 250 kids/grade or so. There are nice neighborhoods near the high school/middle school. It is a very high achieving school, very good gymnastics school too. Several kids in Mahtomedi dance at the St. Croix Ballet in Stillwater. Knowing kids that also dance there, out of the last several graduating classes in that dance studio, almost all of the girls have scored 33 or higher on the ACT, 2 of which last year had perfect scores..out of 6 or so kids....can't really get much better than that.

I disagree with your assessment that the private schools will give you a better community to meet people, not so much when you get into the middle school/high school range. The kids that go to schools like Blake or Breck come from all over the metro so you don't have the parental involvement that you will in a local, private elementary school. I think you will have more success meeting people at a local public school because you will be living near those families, maybe going to church with those families, dance/gymnastics with those families, etc.

You can doubt the achievements of the public schools, however the stats are the stats and when you are comparing "high achievement" to substandard schools, a reasonably good school will look better than it is. When you are comparing a school with high achievers to 30 other districts with similar demographics and standards, it makes a difference.

http://www.ohe.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=792 with about 75% of the state taking the test.....

http://www.act.org/newsroom/data/2012/states.html Texas has about 39% of their students take the ACT, with a composite score of 20.8.

http://www.commonwealthfoundation.or...-by-state-2013 MN ranks 4th overall in SAT scores, Texas 46th. It also shows that only 59% of students in Texas take any kind of college entrance exam...in MN its 75% but you will find that in most suburban districts, 90+% of their students go on to 4 year colleges, the small number of kids that graduate in St. Paul and Minneapolis account for most of those in the metro that do not go on to a 4 year college.

[Campeador]

Look at the stats. It's not just people's opinion here that you should take into account; public schools in the TC are worlds better than in DFW.

Southlake is usually considered a FW suburb, not Dallas, thus the Plano guess. IMO, the suburbs of the TC are much prettier than those of DFW. Of course, you have to deal with snow 6-7 months of the year! Southlake is not my cup of tea, but I have spent some time there. Eden Prairie might be comparable.

[jtbuddy]

Yes, it's Tarrant County & you are right, My bad, we just never go to Ft Worth unless we have visitors from out of town. We prefer Dallas.

All of that information sounds good and I will continue to investigate. The schools around Lake Minnitonka seemed to offer good choices for bright students, and Eden Prarie only had one private school that I could find.

[uptown_urbanist]

Be careful with the private schools. Some really are good -- but others are probably perfectly fine, but are not necessarily geared towards the smartest kids. There were plenty of kids in my public high school who went private K-8 and then moved to public for that reason. In any case, don't fall into the trap of assuming that private is the only or even the best option if you have a smart, academically-inclined kid.

[mnmarina]

Housing and school needs best bet maple grove or Plymouth great schools private, public/charter. 15-20 minutes to mpls.Great schools.net is a reliable search tool. Job options-There are a few Spanish immersion schools in mn you might be able to find something there, or call children's hospital to get contacts for speech therapy specialists. Good luck!

[Pooterdunk]

Originally Posted by jzeig104

I dont believe you said how old your child was, but here are some of the arts schools K-12 in MN


Perpich Center for Arts Education

Saint Paul Public Schools

Folwell School, Performing Arts Magnet

http://www.emid6067.net/crosswinds/index.html

DaVinci Academy of Arts and Science

Westonka Public Schools - Home Page

Home

Saint Paul Public Schools

Saint Paul Public Schools

Visual Arts

Youth and Family Programs | Minneapolis Institute of Arts

You forgot one that may be even better:
Main Street School of Performing Arts (MSSPA): Where Arts & Education Meet. I Main: 952-224-1340

[jzeig104]

Pooterdunk, I think the OP was talking about Visual Arts, not Performing Arts. At any rate, they will get a better feel for the various communities when visiting and can narrow their search at that time. I dont know how else they are going to get more focused.

[jtbuddy]

Husband likes St. Paul & Woodbury area. Any comment on Mound pace Academy or Crosswinds in Woodbury?

My husband liked Highland Park, he is going to commute to Minneapolis for 6 months so now we have more time to explore.

[Libby01]

Crosswinds is a 6-10 grade school, I believe--- which is a little odd, so you have to have a plan for the last 2 years.

I live in Highland and the kids go to public schools here. We've been impressed by how challenging the classes are and are fully confident our kids are prepared for college rigor. But it is a very diverse school (ethnically and socio-economically)-- which means you can't examine the overall test results in order to judge the school. We appreciate the fact that our kids are exposed to diversity and think it prepares them for the real world.

But we do know many different parents who choose to send their kids to private. There are some really great options all close to Highland (SPA and Minnehaha Academy are the better options). We also know several parents who split their kids between private and public. The super bright kid goes to public and the one who is average or they are more worried about goes to private. It's not what you would expect, but the logic is that the private school is an environment where the school's reputation depends on everyone succeeding, whereas the average kid may get lost in the shuffle of a larger public school. That said, you really can't go wrong with some of the private schools. Based on many experiences, I would not recommend Cretin- but SPA, Minnehaha Academy are good choices (albeit expensive). The private/ public debate in my opinion is more about what the parents feel comfortable with-- rather than where their child will get the best education. Either can work and you should decide what's best for you.

We have a number of friends with pools in the Highland neighborhood. They aren't super common- but they do exist and they greatly enjoy them. It's a great way to meet your neighbor kids and friends will flock to your house!

New construction in Highland may be possible, as there are a number of contractors buying smaller, older houses and tearing them down to rebuild new. It's controversial, as the new structure may tower over it's neighbors- but it's pretty common in the highly desirable areas. The Highland neighborhood is very large and housing stock varies depending on area. Within walking distance to Highland Village has great convenience, close to the river has great amenities (trails), Edgecumbe Rd (and beyond) lots are large, suburban like. We love the neighborhood because of it's proximity to so many things, the availability of mass transit (our kids can go places by hopping on bus or light rail) and the amenities (shopping, schools, parks, trails). Good luck on your search!

[Mason3000]

Originally Posted by jtbuddy

Husband likes St. Paul & Woodbury area. Any comment on Mound pace Academy or Crosswinds in Woodbury?

My husband liked Highland Park, he is going to commute to Minneapolis for 6 months so now we have more time to explore.

Mounds Park Academy is highly regarded, but if you end up in Highland, why drive all the way to Mounds Park for school? The top private school in St Paul is SPA (St Paul Academy) which is very close to Highland Park, also Minnehaha Academy is very good & just on the other side of the bridge from Highland Park. Lastly, I'd look at Cretin Derham Hall which is a Catholic school near Highland Park that is more affordable than the others, but has absolutely fantastic sports programs.