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Old 02-02-2010, 10:05 AM
 
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^ I think she means that there is open enrollment within the district, as opposed to being automatically assigned (or limited) to a school based on address.
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Old 02-02-2010, 10:16 AM
 
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[quote=uptown_urbanist;12720743]
(and not to go off on a tangent, but if you're referring to me, I wasn't trying to get you to change your mind and go with an urban district; I was simply using the example of the Minneapolis schools to address your earlier question about how a district with socioeconomic diversity would work for a child with parents who value education. I think the larger point is not that you should go for one type of district over another, but rather that you really can't go wrong with ANY district in the metro area, at least on the education front, including the districts you've listed as your top choices.)



I wasn't referring to you or anyone specifically. I have been reading lots of old posts and just got the feeling that some (couldn't even tell you the names) are in a long standing fight to disprove others' slant towards their favorite community and visaversa. I have found your replies to my post helpful and you seem to "get" my question. You did say that, " as long as the school or district has a high enough concentration of parents who value education (and the school is actively working to keep those families happy) you will be fine." How would I know this? Guess that's the kind of thing I'm asking you guys....

Hoping for more answers. Thanks Golfgal for the funding info and your experiences with the districts your familiar with. Exactly what I want but more of it!
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Old 02-02-2010, 11:06 AM
 
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5cleves,

I get your concern. We have moved So many times and it is VERY hard to judge and area before you are there and esp if you don't know anyone who lives there now. At least your kids are still young enough and worst case you don't like the new school your kids are going to you could change it. I think if you pick and area where your work commute will not be to bad and you are an active parent then your kids will do great no matter what. Finding the perfect school will be hard but not impossible. Good luck on your move.
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Old 02-02-2010, 11:28 AM
 
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I suppose one can never really truly know anything, but at least in my experience at schools with a great deal of diversity the kids who came from families who cared about education didn't encounter problems. Sometimes it can be somewhat segregated, with different tracks of kids essentially having very different experiences within the same building. As far as knowing if the school has a high enough concentration of parents who care, I'd look at school test scores to make sure that a normal or high-achieving child wouldn't be alone or one of a few kids working at that level. I'd check out the district high schools to see how they're doing -- how many AP or IB classes they offer, test scores, types of colleges the kids attend, etc. It doesn't matter if not all the kids are succeeding, but if there are enough students who are performing at a high level it suggests that there will be a sufficient peer group of fellow achievers. Honestly, though, I don't think you'll encounter any problems in the districts you've mentioned; the main problem schools are a few in the actual core cities, and even there there are excellent (and highly-rated) public schools filled with ambitious and successful kids enjoying quality classes. Maybe I'm making assumptions here, but I'm assuming that none of the schools you're looking at have anywhere near the level of social problems faced by some of the Minneapolis and St. Paul schools, so if they can do it there then there should be no problems in somewhere like Mendota Heights. That's not all that useful, I know, but for what it's worth I never hear people talking about avoiding any of the districts you've mentioned (or any other, except for sometimes the city districts, although even then that's typically a school-by-school issue). Funding is an issue, and I hope others can jump in to add details on that front. I know Anoka Hennepin, for example, has had some major cuts, even though the voters did approve a referendum in the fall.

In any case, if the high schools seem to be offering what you'd expect for any ambitious college-bound student then work back from there to see where those students are going to elementary and middle school. Will you have any opportunities to tour the schools before you make a choice?

As far as the materialism concerns, I don't know if there's any way to really get a sense of that before you live in place; I think the school review sites are an excellent place to start (despite their flaws), and I hope a few more people will come along here who have personal recent experience with the schools you're considering. Some of these things are so personal, and what doesn't bother one family or even register as a problem will be a huge issue for someone else. At my school we never had to worry about wearing the "right" thing (and the kids today don't seem to be worried about that, either), but that's definitely not true everywhere. At least in the Twin Cities the pressures are not going to be for really expensive things; there might be pressure to wear the right thing, but that right thing will still be less flashy and expensive than in comparably wealthy schools in some other cities. I don't know how much that difference really makes (focus on material goods is still focus on material goods, regardless of cost), but I think it does fit into the fact that in theory, at least, it's not very socially acceptable in Minnesota to flaunt social status through use of "stuff."

Last edited by uptown_urbanist; 02-02-2010 at 01:30 PM..
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Old 02-02-2010, 05:02 PM
 
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Yea, I wouldn't worry about materialism at all, especially in Mahtomedi. If anything, kids are much more concerned with how the sports teams are stacking up against Hill-Murray and Tartan, how big of fish they caught out on the ice on White Bear Lake the night before, or who has the junkiest pick-up truck that still runs.

Whether or not you drive a sportscar or spent a lot of money on clothes is generally irrelevant. In fact, you are probably more likely to be looked down upon if you show up in a brand new Cadillac that daddy bought.

As for your choices, I would highly recommend Stillwater and Mahtomedi as I think they fit nicely with what you are looking for and they are both outstanding school districts. I also wouldn't rule out White Bear Lake if you can find a house you like there, as although district isn't as top-of-the-line as the other two, it is still far from crappy. Plus White Bear has the most school and community pride out of any other suburb in the metro, the old downtown is really nice too. The downtown's larger than Mahtomedi but slightly smaller than Stillwater. And it has a better location relative to the freeways.
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Old 02-03-2010, 12:35 AM
 
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Hot off the presses: 15.6 million in cuts in Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, including the potential loss of 80 teaching positions (4% of the district's teachers), with potential increase in class size.

Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan district budget proposes job cuts | StarTribune.com

The article has a little bit at the end about other districts with financial troubles, too. Obviously this is not just a Rosemount/Eagan/Apple Valley problem, and it's not just a Minnesota problem. To the OP: I have confidence that these schools will continue to offer their students a decent education, but it does show that funding issues are practically universal.
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Old 02-03-2010, 05:43 AM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by marmac View Post
----Stillwater had open enrollment long before the rest of the state dod,"----

??????????

---open enrollment-- allows students to attend a school district that they don't live in and the state aid $$$$$$$ follows the student to the new district.

I highly doubt Stillwater was accepting students from other districts before open enrollment was passed because I doubt they would take students from other districts and educate them with no state funding.


Care to explain ?
Along with the district to district change you are allowed to open enroll in other schools within a district-as long as there is room, etc. Stillwater has had this option for 40+ years. Say you lived in the boundries of one elementary school and wanted to attend a different elementary school, you could apply for open enrollment to do that. In our district there are 5 high schools, there are a lot of kids that open enroll to the different high schools for various reasons.

There have been other districts that have had formal arrangements for open enrollment long before the statewide plan went. The districts would come to an agreement as to how much money one district would send another for this option. I know the Marshall and Milroy schools have done this for over 30 years.
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Old 02-03-2010, 05:48 AM
 
20,793 posts, read 61,124,693 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist View Post
Hot off the presses: 15.6 million in cuts in Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, including the potential loss of 80 teaching positions (4% of the district's teachers), with potential increase in class size.

Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan district budget proposes job cuts | StarTribune.com

The article has a little bit at the end about other districts with financial troubles, too. Obviously this is not just a Rosemount/Eagan/Apple Valley problem, and it's not just a Minnesota problem. To the OP: I have confidence that these schools will continue to offer their students a decent education, but it does show that funding issues are practically universal.
Which is exactly what I was talking about in my previous post. Considering the budget shortfall from the state is 34 million and they only have to cut 19 million-it still speaks highly of their financial stability. Look up the article on what is happening with the Minneapolis schools with the same budget cut from the state-it isn't very good.
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Old 02-03-2010, 08:11 AM
 
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^ Given that the poster is not interested in living in Minneapolis and it has not been brought up as an option, I fail to see why that is relevant. (to avoid going off on a tangent I won't explain what's going on in Minneapolis, but anyone who is concerned and is considering a relocation to Minneapolis could consider starting a separate thread about MPS schools and their options; much of the cuts have to do with reorganizing and moving towards community schools - cutting transportation costs - which I think is actually a fairly exciting idea.)

Like I said, budget cuts and their impact are not only being felt by the students in Rosemount - although of course it would be equally incorrect to suggest that they're not being felt in Rosemount, either. In any case, this is a particularly relevant article to the OP, given that it provides some updated information on the districts that she is considering or that have been suggested.

On the plus side, and this goes for all districts in the Twin Cities, keep in mind that at least while the budget cuts are going to be felt, even after the cuts most of these schools are still going to have lower classroom sizes and more amenities than you find in districts in many other states.

Last edited by uptown_urbanist; 02-03-2010 at 08:55 AM..
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