Fox Chapel Schools: Good or Bad? (Philadelphia, Pittsburgh: spring break, house, neighborhood)

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by Retiredcoach

I totally get what you are saying. A number of years ago, when I was still "wet behind the ears" as a coach, I was interviewed to be the ninth grade boys' basketball coach at North Allegheny. When the AD called me to say that I did not get the job, he was very upfront and direct. He told me that the job was going to a person, who may not have had my BB background, but had been a grizzled veteran coach, who would be unfazed by the emotions and disappointments of the cuts needing to be made. He told me that he did not view me as being experienced enough to emotionally detach myself from the process of dwindling a list of 40+ former middle school BB athletes down to just 12 (the roster number set by the varsity coach). Looking back, I know that he was right....

Long story short, Copanut, if you played BB for North Allegheny and "rode the pine", you must have still been a very good player !

I wasn't that good, but I made the 1st string look great at practice. I played back in the days of George Karl and Billy Knight in the Eastern suburbs. I watched both of them...from the bench.


Being on a team is a great experience, but when the school is so large it's really tough to make it, just sheer numbers.

[gg]

Originally Posted by lettert

Not really sure the distinction of diversity at Fox Chapel is widely accepted either. Seems to be on par with other wealthy districts.

I don't do the diversity = black people thing. I find that hilarious. Diversity is all about culture and in my family that means international, not just Americans with different skin tone. International is what you will find in FC because so many educators and doctors from other countries choose FC for their children due to proximity to where they work. It is the closest great school district to Oakland. Now that is real diversity, not the made up one.

[gg]

Originally Posted by Copanut

When did you go from 9 to 6 months?

State required 187 days times six [6] hours a day. Six [6] hours per day is the average between an 8 AM to 3 PM school day and an 8 AM to 4 PM school day, less the one [1] hour state required "off period," and allowing one half [1/2] hour for lunch. Non of the other non-instructional 'off' periods of time were considered, yet they are many. Things like five [5] minutes between classes and while all students are busy studying or testing. A teachers' students are often excused for pep rallys, plays, concerts and home games during school hours. These add up to considerable 'off' time. FC teachers average how much?

[erieguy]

Originally Posted by gg

State required 187 days times six [6] hours a day. Six [6] hours per day is the average between an 8 AM to 3 PM school day and an 8 AM to 4 PM school day, less the one [1] hour state required "off period," and allowing one half [1/2] hour for lunch. Non of the other non-instructional 'off' periods of time were considered, yet they are many. Things like five [5] minutes between classes and while all students are busy studying or testing. A teachers' students are often excused for pep rallys, plays, concerts and home games during school hours. These add up to considerable 'off' time. FC teachers average how much?

Not enough $$$, imo. It's becoming an extremely more difficult job.

[Paul2421]

Originally Posted by gg

State required 187 days times six [6] hours a day. Six [6] hours per day is the average between an 8 AM to 3 PM school day and an 8 AM to 4 PM school day, less the one [1] hour state required "off period," and allowing one half [1/2] hour for lunch. Non of the other non-instructional 'off' periods of time were considered, yet they are many. Things like five [5] minutes between classes and while all students are busy studying or testing. A teachers' students are often excused for pep rallys, plays, concerts and home games during school hours. These add up to considerable 'off' time. FC teachers average how much?

Spend a day in a classroom and then you can complain about teachers being paid too much. Can't imagine what it is like in this day and age of entitle kids and parents. Not even taking into account how hard it is to get a teaching job in most districts.

[tclifton]

Originally Posted by lettert

Spend a day in a classroom and then you can complain about teachers being paid too much. Can't imagine what it is like in this day and age of entitle kids and parents. Not even taking into account how hard it is to get a teaching job in most districts.

I've always liked this quote:

Education is the silver bullet. Education is everything. We don't need little changes, we need gigantic, monumental changes. Schools should be palaces. The competition for the best teachers should be fierce. They should be making six-figure salaries. Schools should be incredibly expensive for government and absolutely free of charge to its citizens, just like national defense.

[Merge]

Originally Posted by lettert

Spend a day in a classroom and then you can complain about teachers being paid too much. Can't imagine what it is like in this day and age of entitle kids and parents. Not even taking into account how hard it is to get a teaching job in most districts.

The poster obviously has no idea what the job demands. And the numerous responses intending to set him straight haven't even mentioned the ever-increasing administrative work, special needs differentiation, lesson planning, and continuing-education demands placed on the public school teacher. These things require a full-year commitment.

[S_Daddy]

Well that went off on a tangent XD. Anyways, will we be one of the only "average" families in Hampton? I understand that there are a lot of houses of values within our budget, but do FAMILIES typically live in these types of houses? Or do almost all of the families with Hampton students live in the rich neighborhoods?

[gladhands]

Originally Posted by gg

I don't do the diversity = black people thing. I find that hilarious. Diversity is all about culture and in my family that means international, not just Americans with different skin tone. International is what you will find in FC because so many educators and doctors from other countries choose FC for their children due to proximity to where they work. It is the closest great school district to Oakland. Now that is real diversity, not the made up one.

Are you intentionally disingenuous? The Fox Chapel schools are 7% Asian and 2% Latino. You've repeatedly stated that blacks don't count for diversity (that's called erasure, btw), but I don't think even you could call those fugue culturally diverse, to say nothing for the relative lack of socioeconomic diversity.

[speagles84]

Originally Posted by bluecarebear

Yeah, you should really check out homes in the school districts first. That won't get you into Fox Chapel itself. Not sure about the other towns in the district.

Fox Chapel SD is a fantastic school district. The person claiming it's a inner city school has NO idea what a city school is.

180k will not get you a home in Fox Chapel or Aspinwall though. Maybe some areas of O'Hara township. I'd look in Blawnox.