Schools- How to Decide? (Scottsdale, Peoria: houses, neighborhoods, middle school)

[mamaguz]

Question- how does one coming from another state decide which area to live in based on schools? We have narrowed down our search to North Peoria and Scottsdale. Both places have schools rated 8 on greatschools.org but the reviews in the Scottsdale schools tend to be negative from the parents that have posted- but there are only a few recent reviews up.



We love the uniqueness of the houses in Scottsdale, and the amenities are more what we are used to from where we are coming from....but wonder if Scottsdale is more a retirement community? Its important that our kids are in a good situation so that they can easily assimilate and feel settled. We have 2 in middle school and 1 in high school. The Peoria schools get great reviews from parents, and it seems like maybe its more of a family friendly community....


Coming from out of state its hard to know all the details of an area...what do you all think?

[Ponderosa]

You choose schools here the same way as anywhere else. The better (more $$) the neighborhood, the better the schools.

[DetroitN8V]

Scottsdale is a very diverse city with a diverse demographic. There are LOADS of families with children here. It's a great place to raise a family and if you like the amenities and it's within your budget, don't hesitate.

[ringler24]

Originally Posted by mamaguz

Question- how does one coming from another state decide which area to live in based on schools? We have narrowed down our search to North Peoria and Scottsdale. Both places have schools rated 8 on greatschools.org but the reviews in the Scottsdale schools tend to be negative from the parents that have posted- but there are only a few recent reviews up.



We love the uniqueness of the houses in Scottsdale, and the amenities are more what we are used to from where we are coming from....but wonder if Scottsdale is more a retirement community? Its important that our kids are in a good situation so that they can easily assimilate and feel settled. We have 2 in middle school and 1 in high school. The Peoria schools get great reviews from parents, and it seems like maybe its more of a family friendly community....


Coming from out of state its hard to know all the details of an area...what do you all think?

We were in your shoes last summer. I completely relate. It was such a tough decision and I was super emotional about it, beyond stressed about the whole move and needed to choose a neighborhood site unseen etc.. I shed many a tear over it. Our oldest is 13 and we have two more in elementary who were super attached to our old neighborhood and their schools. I have a friend in North West Peoria and they have been really happy with the schools there. I recommend seeing if you can find a neighborhood FB group where you can ask your questions and have people answer that you can message and get a really good feel.

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

You choose schools here the same way as anywhere else. The better (more $$) the neighborhood, the better the schools.

You reduced it down to the lowest common denominator. I would add the word "ranking" to the end of your sentence and then it would be spot on.

I would take it one step further: The more expensive the neighborhood (on average) the more educated the parents. Educated parents on average have higher expectations which results in less slacker students. So the higher average test scores are a result of having less coaster students in the class room. If you as parents have high expectations for your kids as a factory worker or as a medical doctor parent, it won't matter if you live in Peoria or Scottsdale or Cave Creek. It's why (too much pressure) "Tiger Parents" who come from nothing have ultra high performance children in the classroom.

Countering that POV, if you are hands-off parents and go to the best rated district in the country, your kids run the risk of dragging down the average test scores and rankings.

So in the end, it just so happens that motivated parents correlates to their education level which correlates to income which correlates to more expensive housing. People take a leap and assume a Scottsdale school will educate their kids "better" because of a school ranking. That's not the case unless your kids go to a school full of distractions which correlate to poor neighborhoods and burnt out teachers.

Considering the op is concerned about districts, I predict they are motivated parents. Hence, both schools will be a tie for their children even with different average rankings.

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by DetroitN8V

Scottsdale is a very diverse city with a diverse demographic. There are LOADS of families with children here. It's a great place to raise a family and if you like the amenities and it's within your budget, don't hesitate.

We covered this topic already. Scottsdale demographics are not diverse. Remember that we are on City-Data. Here are their stats: //www.city-data.com/city/Scottsdale-Arizona.html

83% white.
1% black.
4.5% Asian.
10% Hispanic.

That's 96% of the Scottsdale population. I know you base your data off of who you see in the restaurants. But the op will be seeing these demographics in the classroom which will match the percentages that I posted.

[KurtAZ]

There are school ranking sites and there is a State Report Card site. Research and budget is really what it boils down to. I wouldn't hesitate to move my family to Scottsdale. I don't know much about N Peoria.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by MN-Born-n-Raised

We covered this topic already. Scottsdale demographics are not diverse. Remember that we are on City-Data. Here are their stats: //www.city-data.com/city/Scottsdale-Arizona.html

83% white.
1% black.
4.5% Asian.
10% Hispanic.

That's 96% of the Scottsdale population. I know you base your data off of who you see in the restaurants. But the op will be seeing these demographics in the classroom which will match the percentages that I posted.

You're really reaching for an argument here. You foolishly assumed that I was referencing racial diversity. Did you read the OP? She was asking if Scottsdale is a retirement community and I was responding to that. There are people from DIVERSE backgrounds, family structures and stages of life in Scottsdale.

Nonetheless, 17% non-white is far more racially diverse than many places, but I didn't bring that up.

[asufan]

Scottsdale definitely has a little bit of that retirement area "feel" in many parts. The Northern areas DC Ranch and North is a lot of empty nesters and seasonal visitor with houses sitting vacant much of the year. There's also families peppered in here and there as well, but I would guess there's far more children in North Peoria. South Scottsdale is a lot of younger singles and couples without kids. The lower number of children is evidenced by how few High Schools there are and how spread out they seem to be from one another, and also there have been a couple of elementary schools close the past few years as the kids are consolidated into other schools. It's not that drastic that it would prevent me from moving there if I loved everything else, but it is one of the considerations I took into account when I chose to live elsewhere.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by asufan

Scottsdale definitely has a little bit of that retirement area "feel" in many parts. The Northern areas DC Ranch and North is a lot of empty nesters and seasonal visitor with houses sitting vacant much of the year. There's also families peppered in here and there as well, but I would guess there's far more children in North Peoria. South Scottsdale is a lot of younger singles and couples without kids. The lower number of children is evidenced by how few High Schools there are and how spread out they seem to be from one another, and also there have been a couple of elementary schools close the past few years as the kids are consolidated into other schools. It's not that drastic that it would prevent me from moving there if I loved everything else, but it is one of the considerations I took into account when I chose to live elsewhere.

DC Ranch is crawling with kids. That’s the area I’d recommend for one in Scottsdale that is extremely family friendly. Somewhere around DC Ranch, Grayhawk, Windgate, or McDowell Mountain Ranch (all 85255) and you’ll be with many other families with kids running around, riding bikes, playing soccer, etc.