Patrick Henry High? (Roanoke, Cave Spring, Madison: rentals, lawyers, houses)

[breeze823]

Coming up next week to look at a few houses. One has Patrick Henry as the high school. I looked it up on Great Schools.com, not one of the better picks of schools according to the site.
Anyone have kids there and what are your thoughts? Just trying to decide if we should skip it. Generally I am not crazy about city schools but this one house falls into the area.
Middle school is James Madison and elem is Crystal Springs (which the elem looks fine)
I will have children attending all 3, elem, middle and high.
Thanks for any opinions you might have!

[Diamond Dave]

PH is a fine school. The two Roanoke City high schools in general are rated a little low due to the proximity of the Roanoke County high schools, which tend to be almost exclusively white and wealthy, while the city schools have significant minority populations and poorer clientele (I think PH is about one-third black). Not that poor minority kids aren't as smart as wealthy white kids, but more of the city kids are going to have home problems and other distractions that lowers their performance in the classroom. However, you never hear of any serious problems at PH with drugs, guns, or that kind of thing. People who rate PH low have probably never seen a "real" city school like you might find in Baltimore City, so it's all relative.

Roanoke City also has a new superintendent of schools, Rita White, who has almost overnight changed the mood of the city schools. She is emphasizing art and music, foreign language instruction, and doing things to keep kids from falling through the cracks. Now, instead of students and teachers leaving city schools for county schools, they're trying to get back into the city.

PH is in a brand new building with a brand new football stadium. It's in a great part of town, the Raleigh Court/Grandin Court neighborhood in Southwest Roanoke, right next to a library, a park, and the Roanoke Valley Governor's School. I live about 1/2 mile from there . James Madison is a good middle school, right next to a huge park, an aquatics center, and a community college. If your elementary is Crystal Spring, then the house is probably in South Roanoke, which is the "best" neighborhood in the City.

In short, don't let these schools discourage you from looking at that home--if anything, they should be a plus, as South Roanoke and Southwest Roanoke are wonderful, safe areas with plenty of soul and charm.

[breeze823]

Thanks Diamond Dave (you're not a VH fan by chance are you )
I appreciate your insight and will definately look at the house!

[Diamond Dave]

How do you DLR didn't steal MY nickname??!!

Happy house hunting.

[breeze823]

Originally Posted by Diamond Dave

How do you DLR didn't steal MY nickname??!!

Happy house hunting.

Well, I never thought of it like that,lol

[Teebyrd86]

I live in south roanoke and absolutely love it! You will not regret living in this neighborhood. I live amongst the doctors and lawyers yet still manage to pay my rent lol :-). This area does have lots of charm and character. But dont wait very long as rentals go fast in this neighborhood. Good luck!!

[j1n]

i have a friend who attended Cave Spring HS (one of the more sought-after schools in the area). She and her husband work with Young Life at Patrick Henry now. She told us she thought Patrick Henry was a pretty great school.

[breeze823]

Thanks everyone! We'll be up on Thursday to look around! I can't wait

If you see a mini van with Ga plates, that's probably us! Say hello

[bethybb]

My niece attends PH, and there is NO way I am sending my son there when he gets to high school age. As her guardian, I am listed on the school's computer as first person to contact, and when school was in I would get recorded messages from the school computer telling me the school was in lockdown because of a fight, or something similar, probably 2-3 times a month. My niece is happy because she knows most of the teachers, and I don't have any other options. I'm sure there are some good kids there, and I know many of the teachers do a good job. The facility is beautiful. But - there is a very "inner-city" feel when I drop her off - which amazes me because this is not that kind of town, and the neighborhood itself is gorgeous.

If you have the option, pick a place that has county schools. They have much larger budgets, and each kid even gets issued a laptop to use throughout high school. I think there is a $69 annual fee for maintenance on it, and it gets turned in over the summer.

When we were going to move here 2 years ago we looked online and thought William Flemming looked awesome - it really looks great on paper. But, it is actually considerably worse than Patrick Henry.

Good luck and I hope you find a great home here.

[breeze823]

Thanks Bethy, appreciate you sharing your experience! I hope we find a great home there too!