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We've been seriously house hunting for the past couple of months. My favorite houses (both style-wise and price-wise) tend to fall in the Hope Valley school district, but my spouse refuses to consider Durham schools. We are currently in Chapel Hill. If you have children at Hope Valley Elementary, please tell me what you think of it, both good and bad.
No info on Hope Valley ES here, but I would encourage you to look ahead farther than elementary school unless you know you'll be leaving the area or home in a certain time frame. Years pass quickly, and middle and high school assignments are extremely important and impactful.
Are you in the Facebook group SoDu Parents Posse? I bet you'll find your answers there!
OP - this - join this Facebook group. You're starting to get other comments from people who don't live in Durham and are trying to warn you off Durham schools.
I live in Durham but don't have kids so can't give you first-hand experience - I do live right near Hope Valley (though not in it) and I assure you there are school-aged children there
And they are alive! And seem happy.
I hear SoDu Parents Posse is a great group so there's your answer.
OP - this - join this Facebook group. You're starting to get other comments from people who don't live in Durham and are trying to warn you off Durham schools.
I live in Durham but don't have kids so can't give you first-hand experience - I do live right near Hope Valley (though not in it) and I assure you there are school-aged children there
And they are alive! And seem happy.
I hear SoDu Parents Posse is a great group so there's your answer.
I'm a SoDu member -- its a large and very active group. You can definitely get some first hand perspectives of HVE as well as the middle/high schools it feeds into from the Posse.
I have a child in first grade at Hope Valley. We just moved to Durham so our experience is limited, but the school was recommended to me by several local friends. Also the middle (Githens) and particularly the high school (Jordan) are well regarded. I can't say it's blown us away, but our son has had a pretty good experience so far. I met the assistant principal who seemed very engaged, and knew all the kids. I've been told the AIG program is very active in this school starting around 2nd grade. They have a pretty nice library. It's very economically and racially diverse, and seems to have a good community and parent involvement.
We really like the neighborhoods in the area. Friendly people, lots of trees, some good parks and restaurants close by, very convenient to downtown and not too far if you're heading to Raleigh or Chapel Hill. Again I'm new here so not an expert but I'm happy to answer any specific questions from my newcomer's perspective, so feel free to PM me.
You're starting to get other comments from people who don't live in Durham and are trying to warn you off Durham schools.
:O I hope that's not me, since I'm the only one who posted and I said nothing against Durham. I happen to love Durham and spend most of my waking hours there. My concern is that my DH and I made the mistake of thinking only about elementary school with the first house we bought, not realizing how quickly middle school rolls around. As a result, instead of relaxing during the elementary school years, we found ourselves fretting almost immediately about having to move before middle school. That's always my advice to parents of young children looking for housing - plan long-term, children grow.
As for HV/Githens/Jordan, I wasn't going to comment, because it's all hearsay from me, but for what it's worth, I have several friends and colleagues with that school line-up and they love it. Their kids are thriving and they have lots of activities and electives to choose from. Jordan's band is a lot of fun, too!
:O I hope that's not me, since I'm the only one who posted and I said nothing against Durham. I happen to love Durham and spend most of my waking hours there.
If that wasn't your intention, then my apologies - your first post was vague and fit the often-posted mold of "Durham schools may kill your children".
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My concern is that my DH and I made the mistake of thinking only about elementary school with the first house we bought, not realizing how quickly middle school rolls around. As a result, instead of relaxing during the elementary school years, we found ourselves fretting almost immediately about having to move before middle school. That's always my advice to parents of young children looking for housing - plan long-term, children grow. 
