Diversity in Western PA (Pittsburgh, Butler: job transfer, neighborhood, school districts)

[max123]

Hi,

My family and I are considering moving to the Butler area. We were wondering what are the best areas and school systems for supporting diversity. Most of my family currently lives in southern Illinois where there has been a lot of hatred for anyone who is different. I was wondering what the communities around Butler were like. Are they supportive and accepting of different ethnicities, religions, sexual orientations, and cultures? Our daughter is getting ready to start school soon and I would like her to go to school in a more tolerant atmosphere. Any advice or insights would be appreciated. Thanks

[pghcleak]

I hate to reply on this because I don't really know how things are in Butler County. If I were to give a complete guess...I would say avoid the rural parts? Stick to Butler or Cranberry? Again, I may be way off on this.

Butler County as a whole seems to be 97% white according to Wikipedia.

Maybe someone can be more specific about whether schools and kids are accepting of the things you ask. I'm not sure as I don't know anyone there. I doubt that there's a hatred or anything toward these things but sometimes kids can be rough so maybe someone will have more insight.

[Copanut]

I'd say Butler county is diverse, young white people, old white people, short white people...you get the idea. I would guess in the City of Butler you might find some ethnicity, but overall the county is lily white. The aforementioned Cranberry is growing like crazy along with Adams, Seven Fields, Jackson, and 7 Fields boro. Both Seneca Valley and Mars Area school districts are decent.

and the taxes are lower!!!

[J. Gershon]

Not much diversity there in terms of color. I used to live in Butler, and I don't recall seeing ANY minorities. Unless you count we of the Hebrew persuasion. There is B'Nei Abraham. That being said, I don' think there would be any racial hatred, or whatever. The people were very nice, there kids were sweet (I used to work with kids there), and I think Butler Schools would be good to minorities, if they could find any.

[PeterRabbit]

You may have been on track better when you asked about some towns in Beaver County.

[max123]

I appreciate the responses. I was wondering if anyone had any opinions about the acceptance towards gay and lesbian families, especially in the school systems. Are the towns in Beaver County more open minded?

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by max123

I appreciate the responses. I was wondering if anyone had any opinions about the acceptance towards gay and lesbian families, especially in the school systems. Are the towns in Beaver County more open minded?

LOL! I doubt it. I grew up in BC. When I was a kid there, it was very segregated. Even today, the only communities with much of a non-white presence are Beaver Falls and Aliquippa. You can look up stats on CD. I went to Beaver Falls High School, which had a good-sized AA community, but the kids from my old neighborhood now go to Blackhawk HS, which is 98% white. I don't know about gay/lesbian issues there.

[pghcleak]

I'm not too sure there'd be many, if at all, gay/lesbian families in Beaver or Butler County. Not to say that people would react negatively toward it (some may but I think you could have that almost anywhere), it's just probably not happening in those parts of the area.

It may be more common around Allegheny County, possibly in areas closer to the city.

[claremarie]

If you wanted to know specifically about gay and lesbian families, you could have made that clear upfront, instead of asking more generally about "diversity."
You're not going to find many gay and lesbian families in Beaver, or elsewhere in western PA for that matter. Unless you are living in a college community, or in parts of the city of Pittsburgh, it is highly likely that your child will be the ONLY one in her class (or her school, for that matter) who has gay or lesbian parents.

[max123]

Again thank you for the responses and for the advice. I am referring to all the diversities I mentioned in my original question. My family is made up of different ethnicities, religions, and cultures. Yes I am a lesbian mom who is also part Native American. I'm also part German and was raised in Germany around the German culture. I have relatives who are all different religions. I know what it is like to live in closed minded areas and what it is like to live in open minded areas. For instance, I lived briefly in a small town in Missouri where I was constantly told I wasn't white enough (white enough for what-I'm not sure). It has been my experience that if an area is intolerant towards one group of people then they are typically intolerant to all minorities. Thank you again to those who have shared their experiences and opinions. They are all helpful. It is very difficult to decide whether to take a job transfer to a place you never been before.