Murfreesboro Schools (Franklin, Brentwood, Rutherford: neighborhoods, middle schools, costs)

[Reactionary]

Would someone care to share impressions of Northfield Elementary, Siegel Middle, and Siegel High?

Recommend a Murfreesboro area private / Christian school?

What about Ezell-Harding? Too far? Worth the drive from Murfreesboro?

[Mike in TN]

Originally Posted by Reactionary

Would someone care to share impressions of Northfield Elementary

Never been there and only know one teacher there. I have only heard really good things about this school.

Siegel Middle

Haven't been to this school, but it's held in high regard.

and Siegel High?

As a parent it would probably be fine to send kids there, as it seems to be a sought after school. However, I wouldn't want to work there. I taught a few classes there and had a terrible experience. There are a lot of stuck-up kids that have a sense of entitlement. Maybe that was just an isolated incident though? As far as Murfreesboro goes, you need some money to be in that school zone.

Recommend a Murfreesboro area private / Christian school?

I've heard really good things about the Webb School in Bell Buckle, but it has similar costs to Vanderbilt. (okay, I'm exaggerating, but still...)

A lot of people like Middle Tennessee Christian School (K-12) and St. Rose (Catholic; K-8).

What about Ezell-Harding? Too far? Worth the drive from Murfreesboro?

Probably a pretty good haul, but my buddy really liked going there in the 90s.

[Reactionary]

Thanks for your response, Mike - I've been to 'Daffodil Day' at Bell Buckle

I've also read some of your earlier posts on schools (i.e., comment about TCAP scores).

Northfield gets in the 50-60 range on TN DOE Report Card (NCLB). Erma Siegel scores better (mid 60s) - any impressions as to why? Are those scores good for Tennessee (no offense intended)?

Do you know of sources (I've been to greatschools) for data on middle or high schools? Or is that a good source?

[Diane Giam]

Originally Posted by Reactionary

Would someone care to share impressions of Northfield Elementary, Siegel Middle, and Siegel High?

Recommend a Murfreesboro area private / Christian school?

What about Ezell-Harding? Too far? Worth the drive from Murfreesboro?

Ezell Harding is near the Percy Prist Lake area so its really to far from Murfreesboro.

Diane

[Mike in TN]

Originally Posted by Reactionary

Northfield gets in the 50-60 range on TN DOE Report Card (NCLB). Erma Siegel scores better (mid 60s) - any impressions as to why?

Kids with more money? Usually schools tend to perform better on standardized tests where the parents are more affluent. There's more money in the Siegel area than the Northfield area. I can't explain why, but that's the case most anywhere you go.

Are those scores good for Tennessee (no offense intended)?

I'm not really sure. However, it's no secret that Tennessee schools aren't the most sought after in the nation.

Do you know of sources (I've been to greatschools) for data on middle or high schools? Or is that a good source?

Around November, the local papers run a really huge issue that compiles all the standardized test scores for the entire mid-state. I don't know why it takes that long though. The middle schools have had most of their scores since early summer.

You might can find some additional information about tests scores from these links:

various TNDOE reports

TN Department of Education:K-12 (http://state.tn.us/education/mdata.shtml - broken link)

Also, sometimes each school will post the info on their website.

Rutherford County Schools

[Reactionary]

Thanks again Mike - I guess me asking 'why?' is pretty much somewhere between duh and rhetorical.

I saw that Erma Siegel had IIRC ~15% reduced lunch vs ~50% reduced lunch at Northfield. RCS has a school zone lookup - which isn't all that helpful if you're trying to look at neighborhoods on Google Map. I'm trying to figure out what neighborhoods in the Northfield zone make up the reduced lunch population.

I note that Brentwood and Franklin schools don't score much higher than Siegel. Kudos to TN DOE for making NCLB info accessible (many states don't have good websites / interfaces).

[Mike in TN]

Originally Posted by Reactionary

I'm trying to figure out what neighborhoods in the Northfield zone make up the reduced lunch population.

I should have provided a Murfreesboro City Schools link. I forgot Northfield is a city school, rather than a county school.

I tried to find a zone map for it, but didn't come across one. If you find one I can probably tell you what those areas are.

[TN Homes]

Try this link to help you out with school zone locatioins...
Rutherford County Schools (http://www.rcs.k12.tn.us/rc/schools/schools_frameset.htm - broken link)

[MichaelBNA]

Persoanlly, I would go with Blackman High and Middle for my kids. An all around better experience in my opinion.

[kellyrn]

What do you think about Blackman vs. Siegel schools