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We are looking at houses in Durham (190k-250k). My husband and I have graduate degrees and are looking for a school district that will foster our child's abilities and provide her with a rigorous education. Where should we look?
Secondly, if this is only possible through the magnet system, how likely is it that she be admitted to the magnet of our choice?
High Schools typically Jordan and Riverside perform the best on tests...determine from that what you will in accordance with your view on test scores' relationship to school quality.
Durham School of the Arts is excellent but as you pointed out, it's a magnet/lottery.
We have friends who are moving to Wake County instead. Specifically for better schools. Should we be looking there instead?
It's an error to just say one county is better than another county for schools.
Check some of the archives on this board and you will see that schools, and in particular Wake County schools, are one of the hottest issues to discuss.
Whether we're talking about test scores, redistricting, busing , etc, it seems that there are people on both sides of the fence.
As I said, it would be an error to say that Wake County is just blanket-wise better than any other county. It depends on each individual school.
There are some GREAT schools in Wake County, and some very poor schools in Wake County. There are some GREAT schools in Durham county, and likewise some very poor ones as well.
I know this isn't the most helpful answer, but it's just not black and white. One thing people do say about Wake County is that you should not move to a specific home because of a specific school alone, because reassignment/districting happens more frequently in the growing areas of Wake County and you may be assigned to a different school down the road.
I know of someone who moved out of this area years ago, but moved back specifically to send her kids to Durham School of the Arts. That's pretty high praise right there.
Jordan High is a national top 500 high school...maybe even top 200 or 300 I think. I know Wake has ranked high schools also.
Thank you! This is helpful. Do you feel comfortable enough to mention what you would consider to be the better elementary, middle and high schools in Durham?
And lastly, we heard that the Hillside school has problems, but is a proud historically black school. Is the main problem the low "scores" or are there truly systemic problems like violence and drugs? Would a white kid be welcome? How successful is the IB program, and what proportion of the school is enrolled in it?
And lastly, we heard that the Hillside school has problems, but is a proud historically black school. Is the main problem the low "scores" or are there truly systemic problems like violence and drugs? Would a white kid be welcome? How successful is the IB program, and what proportion of the school is enrolled in it?
Ooooh, I'll answer this one!
We moved to NC last year (September 2007), and my daughter, a HS senior, attended Hillside High School for her senior year. Our family is Caucasian, and although my daughter was a "minority" at this school, we had no problems. In fact, my daughter had an excellent senior year!
Just like any other school across America, Hillside has classes that cater to the brighter students as well as to students that are struggling to keep up.
I had very positive encounters with teachers, administrators, and counseling staff. I was able to attend only one of the PTA meetings during this year, however, and I regret that I did not attend more or become more involved. While not heavily attended by many parents (and this was the case in our nearly all-white school system in Michigan as well), I was very pleasantly surprised to see the principal AND numerous teachers in attendance.
While we felt a little bit of a "culture shock" when we first stepped foot into Hillside, we quickly became comfortable at this school. The principal, Earl Pappy, is a very visible around the students and takes great pride in the school.
Feel free to send me a DM if you have additional questions.
Thank you! This is helpful. Do you feel comfortable enough to mention what you would consider to be the better elementary, middle and high schools in Durham?
Unfortunately I am not too familiar with those. I know that Creekside/Githens/Jordan is a pretty popular SW Durham trio amongst real estate hunters, though Creekside has issues with overcrowding.
I think a lot of it depends on your child, different kids excel in different environments. Fortunately, Durham has a pretty liberal transfer policy, and a lot of great schools offering many different types of programs. I think it would be hard for me to tell you which was the best school until I knew more about your kids, and what made them tick.
I can tell you that Riverside is a great High School choice, as I know the principal fairly well, and my wife's brother has attended there the last 3 years.
We are looking at houses in Durham (190k-250k). My husband and I have graduate degrees and are looking for a school district that will foster our child's abilities and provide her with a rigorous education. Where should we look?
A wonderful place to live in Durham is around Woodcroft Parkway. Depending on where on Woodcroft Parkway, your high school will be Jordan or Hillside. Jordan is a really good school. I personally would avoid Hillside at all cost.
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