Places to live in the city and schools (Pittsburgh, Taylor: rentals, chapel)

[cassie231]

My husband and I are moving to pittsburgh and have two children, middle school and elementary age. We would like to live in the city and be close to a very active lifestyle. We are also concerned about schools, knowing that city schools are typically considered not as good as outside the city but we really enjoy the diversity of city schools. Can anyone offer advice as to where to live that is family friendly and has the BEST schools within the city limits. I want a walkable area and my husband will be working at the VA near the highland area. Also we plan to rent for a year but then purchase a home so advice for both would be okay. Thanks in advance!

[BrianTH]

Squirrel Hill sounds like a perfect fit. Arguably the best feeder system in the City schools, very walkable, reasonably diverse, close to other action around the City, and it is easy to get from there to the VA in question. There are also a decent number of rentals so you could perhaps try it out before buying (bigger rentals are a bit expensive, however).

[Scientist Mom]

As Brian indicated, stay in the feeder patterns for the Squirrel Hill Schools (Minadeo (K-5)/ Sterrett (6-8); Colfax (K-8); Taylor Allderdice (high school). Of the neighborhoods feeding to these schools Squirrel Hill is the most walkable; Greenfield is a somewhat walkable but further the VA; Point Breeze is a little bit walkable.

These topics have been discussed a lot on this forum. Try Searching the forum with the school names and the neighborhood names for more info.

[cassie231]

Thanks for the info. So Minadeo is okay? We are also looking at Fox Chapel. Is it too rural out there?

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by cassie231

Thanks for the info. So Minadeo is okay?

I certainly think it is the sort of city school it sounds like you are looking for--a pretty good school with a diverse student population.

We are also looking at Fox Chapel. Is it too rural out there?

Fox Chapel is mostly more suburban than rural, although it gets pretty sparse in some of the fringes. If you want Fox Chapel schools but a more urban neighborhood, you can look at Aspinwall, Sharpsburg, and Blawnox (Aspinwall is particularly nice in my view). I'm not sure Fox Chapel schools will strike you as diverse, although I believe they do have a large number of Asian kids.

[Sideblinded]

There is a small sliver of Regent square that feeds into Minadeo, it is a nice area very close to Frick park. You just have to be careful and make sure the address is actually PPS. You can find that out of their website. BTW, my son just finished 5th grade at Minadeo, and it is a decent school. They just replaced the principal, everyone was quite upset, so hopefully it will still be ok next yr.

[BrianTH]

It may be tough to find a rental in the Pittsburgh part of Regent Square, but it is indeed a nice option.

[Sideblinded]

We did it!

[pandkc]

So, I just had to comment on this because I currently live in the city, have two kids enrolled in city schools AND happen to work at the VA on Highland Drive!!

1) The Highland Drive facility isn't really located right near or in any city neighborhood that I personally would want to live in-that being said, there are a quite a few neighborhoods (Point Breeze and Squirrel Hill come to mind) that are reasonably close- I'd say about a 10 minute drive depending on traffic.. The other thing to keep in mind is that the Highland Drive Facility is going to be closing in the next couple of years and all of us will be moving to either Oakland or Aspinwall. I actually really like Aspinwall as a neighborhood (Fox Chapel School District) and it's a quick drive over the bridge from Highland Drive!

2) Diversity of Pgh Public Schools- Diversity is a huge reason why we chose to stay in the city school system, but I have to say, I've been less than impressed with what I've seen thus far. Within the city of Pittsburgh, there really isn't much diversity- at least in terms of what I was hoping to see. Of course, I can really only comment on the school my children go to Pgh Montessori (which is part of the magnet program). The school doesn't seem to have much diversity in terms of the teachers or the students. Most are either black or white, or bi-racial (black/white). That's not to say there aren't some children of other races and ethnicities at the school, but it's just not exactly what I was hoping for! But Pittsburgh overall isn't the most diverse city. So, I guess I shouldn't be expecting too much.

3) The biggest thing that you might want to consider is whether or not you think you would want to live in the city long term. We are actually struggling with this right now. They are proposing some major changes in terms of how Pgh Public Schools at the high school level will be structured and this has us concerned for the future and we are very much so considering moving out of the school district.

4) These are all my personal impressions and just that, so please just take what you want from my comments. We have not really had any negative experience living in the city (in fact we love it) or attending Pgh Public Schools but you just need to be well informed and have realistic expectations as to what the experience will be like..

Best of Luck!!

[Sideblinded]

Pandkc,

I have to agree on the lack of diversity, and also the older the kids get, the less diverse the population. Many of my kids friends (white) have migrated or are migrating to private schools during 4th, and the majority after 5th grade. I am surprised at how few kids I know that are moving on to Middle school this yr.

It is kind of sad when I see the buses everyday, almost every single school bus is one race, all African American, all white, virtually no diversity. These kids go to school together, but they live in different neighborhoods and do not hang out after school. They do play at recess, but that is about it.

I too am nervous about all the changes the school district is making, and I never considered private schools until this year. I am going to wait to see how it goes. There are too many changes going on, everything is tied into Gates, Broad, and "fixing the teachers." The Pittsburgh Promise, which has not increased enrollment as promised. The money is not going to help the kids. The Superintendent promised sweeping reform and fairy dust, so far we have had virtually no gain, but for some reason nobody seems to notice. All these programs are increasing management, not educators.

If you are concerned about education, I would recommend reading the book "The Death and Life of the Great American School System" by Diane Ravitch. It is a frightening eye opener.

Sorry to turn this into a negative thread, but I am honestly getting really worried about PPS, and I was once one of their biggest supporters.