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Old 03-21-2011, 10:50 AM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,872,238 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by scrapp View Post
I'd agree that FC schools are good, but the commute to Oakland isn't as good as it would be in the city. I live in Squirrel Hill and walk to work in Oakland. No cars, no gas costs, no Highland Park bridge, and no route 28.

We send our kids to Colfax. Not perfect, but good enough. YMMV.
I am routing for Colfax and hope it keeps getting better and better. That would be great! I just want to mention from S. Pasadena, you don't have to deal with 28 and if you do, which I would the drive time would be seconds because you are on it so short. From Pasadena, you take the little on ramp that is by Delafield, not FC Road. The commute would be pretty easy to Oakland from there and once over the HP Bridge you have all sorts of options depending on where you are going. Obviously the commute from Squirrel Hill IS better. If I had no kids, I would love to live in the city!

If you really want to live in the city, I would probably choose Colfax, like some others have suggested. Visit the school and have a look for yourself. One huge plus could be if you lived close enough to Colfax, you and your kids could walk there. YES, some people do actually walk believe it or not. Not every mother drives an H2 or Expedition to drop their kids off. If you are on Pasadena, your kids will take a bus.
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Old 03-21-2011, 11:08 AM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by robrobrob View Post
Just my two cents. I think with your budget you will not get everything you want. I personally would jump at the house on South Pasadena. The Fox Chapel Area School District is much better than the city schools. While the city schools are improving, I don't think anyone would use the word "great", which is your requirement for a school, to describe either Linden or Colfax. The house also has a two car garage which is pretty tough to find in some of the older neighborhoods.
I would love to up my budget, but residents/fellows do not make big salaries as staff do. I plan to contact the Realtor on the Pasadena house and not rule it out completely due to no central air.

I really appreciate everyones input!!
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Old 03-21-2011, 11:29 AM
 
20,273 posts, read 32,942,390 times
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There are several more primary schools in the City I would view as comparably desirable to Colfax.
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Old 03-21-2011, 03:52 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BrianTH View Post
There are several more primary schools in the City I would view as comparably desirable to Colfax.
I am curious as to why are there so many opinions about Colfax? Positive and negative?

What other city schools are comparable?
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Old 03-21-2011, 04:19 PM
 
20,273 posts, read 32,942,390 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 4&Done View Post
I am curious as to why are there so many opinions about Colfax?
Colfax is the feeder school in a generally popular area of town.

Quote:
What other city schools are comparable?
I personally know people who have been very happy with Minadeo, Linden, Dilworth, Liberty, and Montessori. I strongly suspect there are more good primary schools in the system--those are just the ones in my area that we have talked with people about.
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Old 03-22-2011, 10:29 AM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 4&Done View Post
I am curious as to why are there so many opinions about Colfax? Positive and negative?

What other city schools are comparable?
Colfax is a K-8, so it has a larger footprint (in terms of total enrollment) than the K-5 schools on the east end (Linden, Minadeo).

Also, I think the schools with feeder patterns closer to Oakland have families that are more tech literate than other parts of the city, so you get more city-data postings. Just keep in mind that the population of posters to city-data are not fully representative of the overall Pittsburgh population.
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Old 03-24-2011, 11:52 PM
 
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I would drag my feet and wait to see what school districts are going to do with so much less. It is substantial and it will have an impact on your kids.
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Old 03-25-2011, 12:01 AM
 
781 posts, read 1,615,725 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by scrapp View Post
Colfax is a K-8, so it has a larger footprint (in terms of total enrollment) than the K-5 schools on the east end (Linden, Minadeo).

Also, I think the schools with feeder patterns closer to Oakland have families that are more tech literate than other parts of the city, so you get more city-data postings. Just keep in mind that the population of posters to city-data are not fully representative of the overall Pittsburgh population.

True, but a lot of families bolt in middle school, including Colfax. Minadeo kids do too, but everyone assumes they just go to Sterrett. I know first hand over a 1/3 (not an exact approximation) of the kids that were attending gifted in 5th grade are now attending private schools.

Most of us parents are shocked how much our kids need to learn when they are removed from PPS. I know I was.
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Old 03-25-2011, 05:42 AM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,872,238 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sideblinded View Post
True, but a lot of families bolt in middle school, including Colfax. Minadeo kids do too, but everyone assumes they just go to Sterrett. I know first hand over a 1/3 (not an exact approximation) of the kids that were attending gifted in 5th grade are now attending private schools.

Most of us parents are shocked how much our kids need to learn when they are removed from PPS. I know I was.
Hopefully there will be a migration back into the cities by people that have pride and prices will get high enough to shift those people dragging the city down out, but there may just be too much section 8 for an improvement. It is such a shame PPS is so bad. Maybe East Liberty will some day help by transforming, but if you drive up Negley Run looking at the amazing amount of litter and drive through East Liberty, you will just see more and more litter and syringes, which indicates such a lack of pride. It is so sad and has a huge effect on the school systems. Hope someday a better set of people will move in and make PPS a better environment for those who want to better themselves and there surroundings. I can't help but to dream about the days that the city will become a great place for families and not just people without kids.
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Old 03-25-2011, 07:22 AM
 
357 posts, read 887,055 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sideblinded View Post
True, but a lot of families bolt in middle school, including Colfax. Minadeo kids do too, but everyone assumes they just go to Sterrett. I know first hand over a 1/3 (not an exact approximation) of the kids that were attending gifted in 5th grade are now attending private schools.

Most of us parents are shocked how much our kids need to learn when they are removed from PPS. I know I was.
We haven't reached middle level yet, but I agree that there is shrinkage at the middle level at Colfax. My impression is that it more due to kids leaving Colfax for magnets (e.g. CAPA, SciTech) than for private schools. I also think some of the kids in private K-8 schools (e.g. Falk, Community Day) switch to PPS for high school (i.e. at grade 9). The Environmental Charter School (ECS) is also reducing the Colfax population --- it has no tuition and less district-level bureaucracy (but you have to win the lottery to get in and they are having crowding issues).

I would guess that things are a bit different at K-5's like Minadeo because all the 5th graders have to go somewhere else, so it forces the issue. By the time you've reached 5th at Colfax you're at least somewhat familiar with the middle level program there and unless you are proactive it is easy to stay put.
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