Tell me about University City School District (St. Louis, Kirkwood: appointed, rent)

[MadameFreckles]

We currently rent in U city close to the high school and Jackson Park Elementary and I generally love the area but we are looking to buy soon and can't really afford anything in the immediate neighborhood. There are some nice houses in the neighborhoods west of Hanley and just south of Olive that are in our price range though. This area used to be zoned for Nathaniel Hawthorne but since that school closed it's now in the Jackson Park zone. My concern is for my kids (2&4 yrs) when they start school. The neighborhood is primarily African American which I don't have a problem with but I worry about my kids being teased or bullied for being the odd ones out. We often go to Kaufman Park just south of there and I've seen some bullying and just overall racial tension btw. the older kids.

Anyways, I was just wondering if there is any racial tension within the schools themselves, esp. at the Middle and High school levels. I've spoken with some parents who send their kids there and was kind of shocked at some of the things they said, makes we wonder if the white and black students at the schools really mix socially. I don't have a problem with my kids going to a majority black school, but I don't want them to feel as though they can only befriend and date 10% of the school pop. as they get older. SO if any of you have some personal experience with the schools it would help me out.

[streamsandfields]

Hi Madamefreckles,

Have you considered moving to Lindbergh or Kirkwood school districts? I don't know them first hand, but I have read that they are pretty good!

[trailblazer33]

Originally Posted by streamsandfields

Hi Madamefreckles,

Have you considered moving to Lindbergh or Kirkwood school districts? I don't know them first hand, but I have read that they are pretty good!

That uninformed doesn't answer the OP's question.

[flynavyj]

I'll be looking at this for answers as well. I'm not in the U-City school district, but have a lot of love for homes over there and have wondered how the racial breakdown is. I'm a tad curious what you've heard from the other parents. The area is pretty diverse, and as such (especially by this forum's opinion) would lend to diverse schools and a great upbringing for the children...but if the children self segregate resulting from parental and societal pressures, what good is it?

[mike0421]

Originally Posted by flynavyj

I'll be looking at this for answers as well. I'm not in the U-City school district, but have a lot of love for homes over there and have wondered how the racial breakdown is. I'm a tad curious what you've heard from the other parents. The area is pretty diverse, and as such (especially by this forum's opinion) would lend to diverse schools and a great upbringing for the children...but if the children self segregate resulting from parental and societal pressures, what good is it?

The pie chart represents University City High School racial breakdown:


Where Blue = 90% black
Green = 8% white
Less than 1% hispanic = red
Less than 1% asian = orange
And other races >1%

[aragx6]

I wouldn't have any major concerns sending my kids to Jackson Park, although it is majority black (64%), it's also only 45% kids who are free and reduced lunch eligble, which shows that even parents with means are sending their kids there. Their scores, particularly in the upper grades where a lot of schools have problems, have been on the up and up over the last couple of years, which speaks well of the administration and efforts to improve. Jackson Park Elementary School Test Scores - University City, Missouri - MO

I can't personally speak to the racial divide at the school, and I'm not sure we have any regular posters here who live in U City with school-aged children.

Brittany Woods, which is the only middle school in U City is much more of a mixed bag however. Your oldest would be there in only 7 years, and while there's no way to see the future of the district, that's certainly a concern if you're looking to purchase a home.

My general impression from the test scores is that students who want to succeed generally can, but 87% of the school is black (while 87% of U City middle school-aged students certainly aren't) and a much higher percentage are eligible for free and reduced meals (70%) which tells me that parents with means are choosing to send their children elsewhere.


U City HS has long had a "Yale or Jail" reputation, and at 90% black it's not a diverse school at that point (unless, as some people do, diverse is code for black). So few of their students (13%) hit proficient or above in Algebra as to be a significant concern, though according to Great Schools, students took the AP tests in the following subjects:

• Biology
• Calculus AB
• Calculus BC
• Chemistry
• English Language & Composition
• English Literature & Composition
• French Language
• Government & Politics: U.S.
• Physics C: Mechanics
• U.S. History
• World History

Not an insignificant list. They have a Gifted and Talented Program called GATE, which I suspect produces the vast majority of their high-level students. To me, I'd be less concerned about the racial aspect and more concerned that your children would be scorned simply for placing priority on their studies as so few children there appear to do.

Given the young age of your children, have you given any consideration to looking at living in the city and pursuing some of the magnet options? I wouldn't buy until I knew I could get the 4-year-old in somewhere good, but I've done a lot of research on this issue and if you can get your kid into one of the well-run magnets (and there are quite a few), I've become quite convinced they can get a better education than in UCity or Maplewood-Richmond Heights. For your consideration: St. Louis Public Schools | Magnet and Choice School Guide (http://www.slps.org/1962109299111867/site/default.asp - broken link)

If you have more questions, I'm certainly happy to try and help. I don't have kids, so any information I have is sheerly research based, but it's a subject that interests me quite a bit and I'm happy to try and help (or point you to resources that can) if at all possible.

Best of luck!

[streamsandfields]

Originally Posted by trailblazer33

That uninformed doesn't answer the OP's question.

No, I didn't answer the OP's question as I didn't know the answer. I will read others' responses to find out as well. I was just wondering whether the OP had considered buying a house in a great school district such as Lindbergh. It was just an idea for the OP. If she doesn't like it, that's all right with me.

Unless madamefreckles and her family prefer to live in U City school district only, I don't see why a suggestion to live in another great school district should be considered "uniformed". I've read a lot of uninformed responses to many other OPs' questions, and I didn't see their posts being tracked as uninformed.

Madamefreckles,

The pie chart that Mike posted says that 90% of the HS (students) is black. I've been a minority (in regards to race) for most of my life, and I will say that it has made me stronger in many ways. If the schools are great academically, then most kids strive to learn, to become educated etc. And if the kids have good manners and act decently, then it's a big plus. I hope this response will not be tracked as uniformed.

[MadameFreckles]

Thanks for the responses everyone, I'm disappointed to see that no one on here actually sends their kids there and could give me a first hand account.

We aren't just looking at U city but my husband's work is very close so it's very convenient. Also, we are both students right now and rely on my mother for childcare, and she works nearby as well. Also, we love the neighborhood.We have a pretty small budget, and U city is one of the few neighborhoods that isn't too far from the city but is nice, where we can afford a decent house.

I've thought about the city but even many magnet schools have terrible ratings and the whole process of applying kind of makes my head spin. Also, since my son is already 4 we are "behind" as the best schools start accepting students at 3 for preschool. Even if my son did place as gifted (which is a complete load of crap bc at this age an IQ test would not accurately predict future intelligence, but I digress) there's a lottery and he would count as a transferring student and have low priority.

The situation that they have in the middle and high schools is basically that the only non-black parents who choose to send their kids to school there have their kids in the honors program. Obviously it's a bit early for me to say if my kids will both be interested and able to get into advanced classes. The few parents I talked to told me that they only sent their kids there bc they were sure they would go into the program. Apparently the kids coming in from the two poorer schools (Pershing and Barbara C. Jordan) feel like they got shafted in elem. school and not given the preparation to go into an honors class, and this causes some problem btw. students. I have no idea if this is true, but this area certainly does have HUGE income differences between the area that borders Clayton and the area near Pagedale. I drive past the hs on my way home and it's true that kids seem to self-segregate according to race but I just wasn't sure to what extent it is.

[flynavyj]

Originally Posted by aragx6

it's also only 45% kids who are free and reduced lunch eligble, which shows that even parents with means are sending their kids there.

Wow...nearly half the kids going there can get reduced or free lunch, which seems pretty high to me...and it only gets worse in high school. You don't need tons of money to qualify for the "free lunch" program, according to the 2011-2012 document, a family of four gets free lunch with a combined annual income of only $29,055, and reduced cost meals up to $41,348. I know how hard it can be to make ends meet with salary nearly double that, and while those numbers don't technically qualify as poverty by federal guidelines...I'd have to think they are by "actual" experience. The numbers of course are skewed because many families with means (as pointed out) send their kids to private schools, and change the demographics of the remaining student body.

[mike0421]

Originally Posted by MadameFreckles

Thanks for the responses everyone, I'm disappointed to see that no one on here actually sends their kids there and could give me a first hand account.

I wish we could help you more, but for one, if I am sending a child to school, the race of the kids is secondary, I would focus primarily on finding a school district that performs well with regard to test scores, one where there is an academic premium. Unfortunately, in most cases, race and test scores do correlate. Therefore, I am looking at properties in Clayton, Ladue, Kirkwood, Lindbergh and Webster, and discounting Richmond Heights, Maplewood, University City, Affton, etc.