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I recently accepted a job in the financial district beginning this summer and have begun searching for areas that will fit within our budget. I have three kids, one of whom will be in elementary school, the other two are a couple years out.
Important Criteria:
-We need at least 3 bedrooms and 2 baths with at least 1000 sq. feet. and a parking space.
-Laundry in unit
-Commute to FiDi less than an hour. Ideally, limited to about 45 min.
Additionally, our budget can support about $4000/month with parking. ie, if parking is $200/mo. $3800 is the max.
Here is the real obstacle--schools. We would love our daughter to attend a good public school. We have found that many areas that meet our criteria above have poor public schools.
One area we have researched is Hoboken and would send our child to Hoboken Catholic Academy (if admitted). Unfortunately, sending our child to a private school would reduce our budget by a commensurate amount. If our annual budget is $48k and tuition is $8k, then our new annual housing budget is $40k and monthly budget becomes $3,333.
I am all ears if I have realistic expectations or if I need to compromise somewhere. Please advise on any recommendations. Good schools is my biggest priority, followed by commute time.
We would only live in this place for 1-2 years and would then purchase our own home when we are more comfortable with the area.
Lastly, I would love an opinion on the following: Secaucus, Weehawken, Bayonne with respect to public schools and commute time to financial district.
Grateful for your opinions!
Bayside, Queens would fit you requirements and budget. The LIRR from Bayside to Penn is 25 mins if you catch the express. From Penn to the Financial District would be another 10-20 mins depending on how crowded it is.
You can easily find a 3 Bedroom with 2 bathrooms and have excellent public schools. Parking would be free or cheap.
I've been commuting from Bayside to Tribeca for over a year and can be door to door in as little as 30 minutes on lucky days or around 50 minutes on bad days.
^That. is. awesome!!!
I think I'm in the wrong religion...j/k.
Curb your enthusiasm. Catholic schools are rarely better and often worse than the local public schools. You get what you pay for.
Anyway, Weehawken is the answer, though the commute by ferry is pricey (but at least pretty and low-stress). It has solid schools, including high school, the only town in Hudson County that can boast that.
Curb your enthusiasm. Catholic schools are rarely better and often worse than the local public schools. You get what you pay for.
Main difference in the stats is that Catholic (parochial) schools are generally similar in the quality of education they offer, and their funding is predictable - you know what you get this year will be there next year. Local public schools tend to be all over the place. Some are very good, but some are really bad. Then there is the issue of funding for critical services like FT professional TAs to keep class sizes under control, science, arts, etc. A local PS that offers good programs today may not offer the same programs next year if it cannot get funding.
You seem to have a lot of knowledge on schools. Must have been through all that already. Any idea what are considered the top catholic elementary schools in the Brooklyn diocese (which includes Queens)?
You seem to have a lot of knowledge on schools. Must have been through all that already. Any idea what are considered the top catholic elementary schools in the Brooklyn diocese (which includes Queens)?
One thing I mentioned above - quality is very similar and predictable among parochial schools. The more famous ones in Queens would be OLQM (Forest Hills), Joan of Arc (Jackson Hts, Blue Ribbon), Resurrection Ascension and OLA (Rego Park), Sacred Heart (Bayside) - mainly for their placement track record in specialized HS and Molloy/SFP/SJP/TMLA. But that does not mean that OL Mercy (Forest Hills), IC (Astoria), Avelino (Flushing) or Margaret (MV) are academically weaker.
Alas, Catholic "Academies" are somewhat cheaper than the $20-$40K non-religious private schools.
But what you give up is your freedom to think freely that sometimes lasts your whole life.
You pay for your own indoctrination.
I've never understood people who make the assumption that Catholic school teachers willing to work for less are presumably BETTER than public school teachers who are paid more. Flies in the face of logic.
I also doubt that Catholic schools have better teacher/student ratios than public schools. I WENT to Catholic school and often had 60+ students in a class. An abysmal experience all around with teachers unfit to teach.
OP,
Gear your neighborhood towards a good public school (and forget Hudson County completely.)
I also doubt that Catholic schools have better teacher/student ratios than public schools.
Classmate in my kid's school went to a PS in Rego (definitely not a ghetto school) for K - they were 27 in the class with no TA. She cried on her first day and the overwhelmed teacher promptly sent her to the principal's office. Other families who came from PS around BK and QNS tell the same thing - class sizes going up, academic programs like G&T and art being watered down. There are schools in the "top" SD 26 where kids take enrichment courses in stairwells and janitors' rooms for lack of space.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kefir King
I WENT to Catholic school and often had 60+ students in a class.
This is hardly true today in the Diocese of Brooklyn. Lower elementary classes are usually below 20 and middle school is 25 on avg. with 30 being the max.
Of all the variables, the hidden gem in the conversation here, IMO, is to notice the phrase "FT teacher's aide" relative to classroom registration numbers. Research shows teacher/student ratio among the most important predictors of academic success for the kids. Grill every principal about how the TA's are distributed. When a TA walks in, if they're tasked to serve the entire room, they immediately cut the child-to-adult ratio in half. They make a huge difference to discipline in the room, allowing the lead teacher (the one with the teaching degree..) to teach best.
If a public school says there *is* a teacher's aide, they might be in for 45 minutes/day, rotating among classrooms. Also, *a* teacher's aide might push in, assigned to help one Special Needs child, which is great for that child to be in the Least Restricted Environment where they can learn. But then, watch out for how the lead classroom teacher uses/abuses that Special Needs TA to assist a small work-project group of 4-6 so they'll include the SN child. A SN-TA can be *in* the room for several hours, but without real benefit to most of the classroom.
Some say the Catholic schools begin with better discipline than the publics, and it wouldn't surprise me. But speaking only from the p.s. perspective here that I know, the unsung heroes are the TA's. They earn around $10/hour, but I'd rather see 10 more of them to 1 more high-priced V.P. tasked to handle discipline referrals from overwhelmed singleton classroom teachers. Remember: it's all about ratio.
Last edited by BrightRabbit; 01-04-2015 at 09:27 AM..
This is hardly true today in the Diocese of Brooklyn. Lower elementary classes are usually below 20 and middle school is 25 on avg. with 30 being the max.
Those are good ratios. One good teacher can handle those solo, but the more TA added presence, the better.
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