Relocating from Indiana to Florida (Miami, Sarasota: crime, neighborhood, to buy)

[cjohnson5077]

I am from Indiana and my name is Chrissy! I have been in management for years and I am an accountant with a bachelors degree, working on my masters! I have one heck of a resume! I had a professional writer spruce it up and take all my information to make it more appealing! I applied for a purchasing job out of the blue and got the email and call for a phone interview. I'm getting really excited! Where are you from?

[ZaraZoteBuccaneer]

Twin Cities. Relatively new buyer but moving up in the ranks at my place quickly. Been in the medical diagnostics field for 6 years now at a multi billion dollar corporation.... Promoted three times... They have been giving me so much responsibility in this short span. I'm identified in my annual reviews as management potential, I've assigned to several corporate projects all of the sudden this year and I'm saving the company half a million this year alone - but I don't have a degree.
I think my luck has been a combination of short experience/training in this position and my out of state location - I'm still going for additional training/certifications but it's proving harder than I thought to convey everything about my capabilities to an employer on a piece of paper.
I don't want to take up much more about myself on your thread.
If you find yourself as a Purchasing Manager - don't forget I'm out there....

[cjohnson5077]

ZaraZote! I will not forget about you! I have found it is difficult to portray your real abilities on paper rather than talking to people. Tomorrow I am going to start calling people and talking rather than sending my resume! Good luck to you and keep me posted!

[ZaraZoteBuccaneer]

Originally Posted by cjohnson5077

ZaraZote! I will not forget about you! I have found it is difficult to portray your real abilities on paper rather than talking to people. Tomorrow I am going to start calling people and talking rather than sending my resume! Good luck to you and keep me posted!

awww... I think I might have found a new friend...
I admire your tenacity to just go and get what you want. We all really hope this works out for you and your family. If you really have that kind of savings and responses already, I say leave ASAP. You're obvously wanted down there and your husband has an even better chance at getting a positon.

Skin conditions, winters, and a horrible job market to bear... good for you for doing something about it. With your spirit you're going to look forward to job stability, warmer weather and who knows.... maybe your husband will start that charter someday! Let us know when you get that special phone call that will likely get you crying happily so we can all share in the excitement.

[Big House]

Originally Posted by ZaraZoteBuccaneer

awww... I think I might have found a new friend...
I admire your tenacity to just go and get what you want. We all really hope this works out for you and your family. If you really have that kind of savings and responses already, I say leave ASAP. You're obvously wanted down there and your husband has an even better chance at getting a positon.

Skin conditions, winters, and a horrible job market to bear... good for you for doing something about it. With your spirit you're going to look forward to job stability, warmer weather and who knows.... maybe your husband will start that charter someday! Let us know when you get that special phone call that will likely get you crying happily so we can all share in the excitement.

Hey Buck!
You suck up! You really are starting to sound like me! ;-) Except that you can't stand up to the beer drinking challenge! :+} (my smile after I have a couple).

Chrissy! I think you husband won't appreciate you standing in his shoes challenging me to a beer drinking challenge! But, what the heck! I'm game! I really am good natured, so I won't hurt him too badly! But! if he gets SF'd out on my boat while we're fishing - well he's just gonna haveta hang, cuz I'm not heading in 'till the fish stop biting! Seriously, Good Luck tomorrow, check back in and let me know how you make out! I'm sure you are going to do well!

[cjohnson5077]

Today is the day! I will have the phone interview and hopefully all will go well! If so, then we will be heading down sooner than we thought! I can't wait to see the day where I can put the top down in the Mustang, drive fast on the highway and land in Florida (Sarasota to be exact)! LOL! I need everyone's serious opinion about schools. I know I have had some negative comments on how the schools aren't good, but some people say that about the schools here and they are one of the best in the country! So, I have looked at test scores and found Sarasota Middle School and a few others I can't think of right off the top of my head and the scores were pretty good. Most of the test scores were in the high 80's to mid 90's. Our schools here are testing all in the 90's. Not that I expect the exact tests scores as here but I do want a good education for my son. He is in the 6th grade and is in advanced classes. So, depending on the school will determine where we move. So, if you recommend a school, please also recommend some neighborhoods around that area! Thanks everyone for helping me fulfill my dream!

[Peter the Brit]

Chrissy
Look at Pine View School for the gifted provided your kids can pass the test shoiwng a high IQ
If not mosts of the South County schools are good
Look at Rivendell in Opsrey and Turtle Rock for kid friendly well loacted sub divisons and feel free to message me if you need to talk

[SoFLGal]

If he's in advanced classes then you need to check out Pine View School For the Gifted. I have two kids that go there and we love it. They are ranked the number school in Florida and one of the top in the Nation. All their scores are 99%-always.

You would need to enroll him in another middle school until next year though, because the program is so rigorous they do not accept enrollment in the middle of the year. Also he would need to pass a few tests, one of which is having an IQ above 130.

Some of the neighborhoods near Pine View are-In Palmer Ranch-Turtle Rock, The Hamptons, Deer Creek, Huntington Pointe, Stonebridge. Then you would have Rivendell & Willowbend-right next to the school.

If you look at the school accountability reports in order it would be:
Pine View
Laurel Nokomis
Sarasota Middle
Island Village
Woodland Middle
Venice Middle
McIntosh Middle
Brookside Middle
Heron Creek Middle
Booker Middle

Another place you might want to look for opinions on schools is www.greatschools.com

[cjohnson5077]

Wow! Ya'll are great! Thanks, Peter and SoFlGal! I can't beleive all the great information ya'll are giving me! Thank you so much! I am getting ready for my 1st phone interview and I will message and let everyone know how it goes. Then later this afternoon I will have my 2nd phone interview! Keep the information coming!

My son is very smart. I haven't had his IQ checked, though! He takes many tests throughout the year to place him in classes for the next year. Like I said he is in 6th grade and he is taking 9th grade math, science, reading and english! I don't want him to get bored with school because of the slower paced academics!

[SoFLGal]

Originally Posted by cjohnson5077

Wow! Ya'll are great! Thanks, Peter and SoFlGal! I can't beleive all the great information ya'll are giving me! Thank you so much! I am getting ready for my 1st phone interview and I will message and let everyone know how it goes. Then later this afternoon I will have my 2nd phone interview! Keep the information coming!

My son is very smart. I haven't had his IQ checked, though! He takes many tests throughout the year to place him in classes for the next year. Like I said he is in 6th grade and he is taking 9th grade math, science, reading and english! I don't want him to get bored with school because of the slower paced academics!

Sounds like he'd be a perfect candidate for Pine View. If you end up moving down here I can give you more specific info on the school but like I said before he wouldn't be able to start until the next school year. And I can assure you Pine View would keep him challenged

Pine View is a special program designed to meet the unique needs of intellectually gifted students in grades two through twelve on a broad-based campus. Pine View is a public school so there is no charge for attending this school. The school is located on a 74 acre campus. Pine View's current campus sports more than a dozen buildings situated around a central lawn and connected by blue open-air porticos. Sarasota architect Carl Abbott patterned his design after Thomas Jefferson's "academical village" at the University of Virginia. Each building is color-coded, with yellow indicating mathematics, purple indicating science, blue indicating foreign language, orange indicating social studies, red indicating elementary, and green indicating English. Each main color-coded building contains eight classrooms.The curriculum is one full grade level ahead. So, if your child is in 2nd grade they will be doing 3rd grade work.

Above all, Pine View prepares students for higher education. All high school courses are honors-level, and many are advanced placement. Ninety percent of the class of 2000 earned scores of 3 or higher on advanced placement tests, and 96 percent went on to four-year colleges and universities. Many students graduate with significantly more than the required 26 credits; graduating with 33 credits is not unheard of. Pine View's curriculum emphasizes rigor, and students who have attended other public schools in the Sarasota area generally report that Pine View's classes require significantly more work than their counterparts at other schools.

I have one in 11th and one in 6th grade there. My little one will start at Pine View in two years. We've been at Pine View now for over eight years. The school goes from 2nd-12th.

You will need a psychologist to test your child. This may be done for free by the Sarasota County school district or you can hire a private psychologist to test your child. I chose to have my children tested privately and have a wonderful recommendation for a private psychologist.


Gifted Eligibility Determination



Gifted eligibility encompasses the following three requirements

• A full-scale IQ of 130 and
• A majority of characteristics on a gifted rating scale and
• A need for gifted services as demonstrated by grades and academic achievement

The following items are required by your Sarasota County districted school to determine your child's eligibility for the gifted program at Pine View School. Eligibility will be determined by your districted school upon receipt and approval of:

• Proof of residency in Sarasota County
• Evaluation reporting IQ and academic achievement test scores by licensed psychologist
• Gifted characteristics rating scales
• Report card grades spanning one year

Pine View was recently rated 6th in the Nation. There are several requirements for attending Pine View school. Here are a few other articles/websites on Pine View that you might find interesting:
Pine View Website
Duke University Letter
US News-Best High Schools
City-Data
Wikipedia
Public School Report
School Grades
Truila Schools