What school district is the best in Montgomery County? (Philadelphia: houses, neighborhood)

[ellapreston]

Hello everyone,

I am looking for some advice. My family and I currently live in Philadelphia, in the north Olney/Cheltenham area (north of the old Cardinal Dougherty High School) and we are looking to move. We can see that the neighborhood is beginning to go downhill (hearing gunshots at night, several nights in a row, people hanging out on the corner, etc) but most importantly, we want to enroll our daughter in a good school district. We are just starting to house hunt, and have been looking in the Abington, Willow Grove and Upper Dublin areas. The most important reason for our moving is to find a good school for our 3.5 year old... my question is, which has the best school district in Montgomery county, Abington or Upper Dublin? I did some google research but data that I found was a little old. I guess for now I am more concerned about Elementary and middle schools, not so much High Schools as my children are both very young (both under four years old). Any advice and guidance is appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[toobusytoday]

Go to Pennsylvania Schools - Find a Public or Private Pennsylvania School - SchoolDigger.com Plug in a Montgomery county school district or zip code and then you can have a starting point for scores and start comparing schools.

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by ellapreston

Hello everyone,

I am looking for some advice. My family and I currently live in Philadelphia, in the north Olney/Cheltenham area (north of the old Cardinal Dougherty High School) and we are looking to move. We can see that the neighborhood is beginning to go downhill (hearing gunshots at night, several nights in a row, people hanging out on the corner, etc) but most importantly, we want to enroll our daughter in a good school district. We are just starting to house hunt, and have been looking in the Abington, Willow Grove and Upper Dublin areas. The most important reason for our moving is to find a good school for our 3.5 year old... my question is, which has the best school district in Montgomery county, Abington or Upper Dublin? I did some google research but data that I found was a little old. I guess for now I am more concerned about Elementary and middle schools, not so much High Schools as my children are both very young (both under four years old). Any advice and guidance is appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Neither are the "best," but Upper Dublin is definitely the better of the two, and is functionally as good as Lower Merion, which I believe is the best in the County.

[frankgn87]

Originally Posted by HeavenWood

Neither are the "best," but Upper Dublin is definitely the better of the two, and is functionally as good as Lower Merion, which I believe is the best in the County.

Agreed. Lower Merion for the win

[bryson662001]

Originally Posted by HeavenWood

Neither are the "best," but Upper Dublin is definitely the better of the two, and is functionally as good as Lower Merion, which I believe is the best in the County.

Upper Dublin High rates a 5 compared to 4 for Abington and Cheltenham but Upper Dublin elementry schools rate a 4 or a 5 same as Abington elementry schools. It doesn't seem as if the school ratings are that much different between the towns. They are all very good. Probably the availability of houses that fit the criteria would be more important. Abington is a little closer to the city and has better shopping opportunities if that is important yet not too close for comfort like Cheltenham is.

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by bryson662001

Upper Dublin High rates a 5 compared to 4 for Abington and Cheltenham but Upper Dublin elementry schools rate a 4 or a 5 same as Abington elementry schools. It doesn't seem as if the school ratings are that much different between the towns. They are all very good. Probably the availability of houses that fit the criteria would be more important. Abington is a little closer to the city and has better shopping opportunities if that is important yet not too close for comfort like Cheltenham is.

Test scores are not the end-all be-all, but there is a sizable district-wide gap between Upper Dublin and Abington (17 v. 59). Of course, Abington is certainly a good District, and I can't see a smart and motivated student with strong parental support ending up any differently after high school. But Upper Dublin may be able to offer more AP courses on the high school level or a more comprehensive gifted program on the elementary school level. Based on your childrens' wants and needs, inquire into these differences. It's definitely worth looking into.

[cpomp]

The best school district in montgomery county is lower merion. The best of the districts your considering is upper dublin.

[Angus215]

there are many excellent school districts in montgomery county. in fact, most of the districts in the county are very good. there is no such thing as "the best" - there are many objective and subjective sources but i would say that any district in the top 50 of this list is "very good" to "excellent".

The Top 50 School Districts 2008 | Philadelphia Magazine Articles (http://www.phillymag.com/article/the-top-50-school-districts-2008/ - broken link)

[bryson662001]

It's curious how the $ spent per child doesn't seem to matter that much in the rankings.

[Angus215]

Originally Posted by bryson662001

It's curious how the $ spent per child doesn't seem to matter that much in the rankings.

There are some pretty bad schools districts that spend a lot per child, and some very good districts that are run efficiently and don't spend that much per child. Personally, i don't want my district to be particularly high in that category, or particularly low. I want to be right around the average.