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Old 10-13-2015, 11:26 AM
 
11 posts, read 13,903 times
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Hello,

I wanted to ask for some opinions on the high schools in the Monterey County.
I just got a job offer in Salinas, and trying to find a place to move to. I have a high school age daughter, and I am looking for a decent public high school.

From researching on the internet, Carmel and Pacific Grove High schools are best rated in the area. Monterey High School is rated 7 and Salinas High rated 6 on the GreatSchool website.

My main concern is that we are non-caucasian, and by no means wealthy. We can manage to afford to live in Pacific Grove. But I am worried about "the snob factor" for the lack of better words. I read that carmel High could be a bit racist-ish (sorry, I read that in the reviews on GreatSchool), and Pacific Grove High could be rather closed to outsiders.

Do any of you have some insight into how those high schools are in terms of being open and welcoming to outsider, minority students without unlimited resources?
Any opinions on other schools?

Thank you in advance!
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Old 10-13-2015, 12:57 PM
 
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My suggestion would be Monterey High School. I have a student there and we love it. There is such a blend of students. I am not sure if your student is active in the school but there are many clubs and sports. The school is set up to gear students in the direction of what he or she would like to become in the future. Mr. Tanks is an excellent teacher of J.R. ROTC. There are many different academies your student can choose from. Some are Avid (gears students towards college with visits and getting ready for jobs), Spark (health careers and sports medicine), MOAS (ocean studies).

My student is one is non-Caucasian as well and she loves it.

I would also recommend Marina High, if your student is looking for limited sports and smaller surroundings. I would stay away from Carmel. It is a very nice school but the racist factor is an issue.
I do not know much about Salinas High, however the surrounding are a little troublesome.

I hope this is helpful. I drive my daughter to Monterey from Marina.
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Old 10-13-2015, 03:45 PM
 
Location: Salinas, CA
353 posts, read 422,500 times
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Everything North of Carmel/PG you are fine as far asa more diverse population.
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Old 10-13-2015, 03:54 PM
 
11 posts, read 13,903 times
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Thank you for the reply.
It's nice to hear from parents!
I am also considering Monterey High, which seems to be in the middle in terms of ethnic diversity, the size and test scores. I read that (again at great schools.org) that the school doesn't push students very much academically. How do you feel about students' college preparedness?
I used to teach at a large public university and I know academic skills vary widely between students depending on which high schools they attended. I would like my daughter to be ready as much as possible. But I also know that just because schools rate high in test scores, it doesn't necessarily mean they are great schools. I would love to find a welcoming school with great academic opportunities.
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Old 10-14-2015, 12:22 PM
 
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I was hoping some PG High School parents would chime in and tell me how welcoming they are....

Anyhow, how do kids get to schools if they don't live within the walking distance to schools?
Is there public transportations in Monterey? I can't really find any bus or train system for the city online. Do most parents drop off and pick up students?

Hmmm.... Moving is stressful.
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Old 10-14-2015, 01:02 PM
 
Location: Salinas, CA
353 posts, read 422,500 times
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Check MST (I think that's Monterey Salinas Transit) - that's the public transit around here.

My 2c: If you want the best for your daughter live in Carmel Valley (or Carmel?), and get them in at the high school that's on Highway 1. Pretty sure that's Carmel High (near Ocean Road). In some areas, they have more resources there than at the local community college, MPC.

However, as I learned in life it is more about your child WANTING to learn that the school TEACHING them things. I grew up and graduated from a high school in West Virginia. That hasn't slowed me down at all. Your daughter needs to have the right attitude, and if she does then I doubt it'll matter much if you send her to PG, Monterey or Salinas. If she doesn't then even the best school won't do much. -in my opinion
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Old 10-14-2015, 06:24 PM
 
Location: Mountains of Oregon
17,609 posts, read 22,519,982 times
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Several lustrum ago, after i graduated from Monterey High, i drove a school bus for two years. At that time the bus shop & storage/parking was at Monterey Peninsula College (MPC).

Monterey Peninsula Unified School District: Bus Schedules and General Information

The bus routes i drove were in Monterey & Seaside.

I don't know about the bus routes for Pacific Grove. That district may have had their own buses. You can call them to find out.



Best of Luck finding your place & making your move ...
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Old 10-14-2015, 08:10 PM
 
11 posts, read 13,903 times
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Thank you everyone, for your input.

I totally agree with you, TwistedGray, the most important thing is the student's attitude. I'm still debating between those three (PG, Monterey, and salinas) schools. Each has pros and cons. I have a feeling Carmel will not be a good fit for us. My daughter is a hard working student with good grades. I think she'll be fine. I hope to find a place where we can be reasonably happy. I have never been to Monterey area, and it's very difficult to get a feeling of what each city/town is like. This forum has been a great help! Coming from a big city, it'll be a change for sure.

As for the transportation, high school students ride school buses there? I checked the link Hawk J provided (Thank you!). That will be wonderful. I thought I had to find an apartment very close to the school so my daughter can walk there, since I won't be able to pick her up from school, especially if we decide to stay in Monterey. That makes apartment hunting so much easier (but having a big dog really make it hard).
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Old 10-15-2015, 12:15 AM
 
Location: Salinas, CA
353 posts, read 422,500 times
Reputation: 313
All of the areas are next with exception of pockets in Salinas and Seaside. A little research will highlight those quickly...so just avoid that and you're probably fine.
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Old 10-15-2015, 01:38 AM
 
Location: Vancouver, WA
8,176 posts, read 16,571,310 times
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I have heard stories from locals who were Caucasian about the snob factor at Carmel High. One had moved there so that his very bright daughter could excel academically. Unfortunately, the students were so cruel to her because she was so bright (genius level) that they had to pull her out and send her to private school. I guess competition, jealousy and insecurity can be contributing factors there as well. I have heard generally better things about PG High and if we weren't homeschooling would probably go that route with our kids.

Regarding Monterey High, I have heard both good and bad from various parents in the area. Their stories and experiences tend to be mixed. So, take what you hear with a grain of salt and do plenty of research. The same is true for Salinas and Marina High. Although poorly rated, a friend of mine's son graduated with honors from Salinas High and got accepted to all the engineering schools he applied to including his top choice - Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. As was mentioned, if the student is highly motivated, they can excel at these lower ranked schools and still do very well. There are more to these schools than their test score averages alone, especially when you consider many of the students come from poorer families and may not even speak English as their primary language. Lots to consider for sure. Monterey may be a good mix in terms of ethnicities. Salinas and Marina are primarily Hispanic. My friend's sons who went to Salinas High were Caucasian (Russian actually).

Derek
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