Schools in St. Louis -- so many choices!! (Kirkwood, Webster Groves: how much, lawyers)

[ReloMom09]

Our family is considering a move to the St. Louis. We will want to live within a 20-30 minute commute of work (west county -- Town and Country). There is a dizzying array of school choices, so any and all input will be greatly appreciated!

We have 2 children; our son is entering 9th grade and our daughter will be in 6th grade next year. We are looking for an academically challenging school with AP/Honors or an IB program (High School). We are also ooking for an inclusive, supportive environment for our children. As far as sports go, we need Football and Track programs (boys) and volleyball and track (girls).

We haven't decided between public or private school - either is fine for us but we are looking for medium-sized school, we come from a consolidated school district and find the large High Schools a bit intimidating for our two kids. Something with a 150-200 students per grade would be perfect.

Thank you in advance for your input!!

[aragx6]

Some of the that area is very pricey, so knowing your budget would allow us to help you best. Also, do you prefer older inner ring suburbs or newer outer ring suburbs? You can get either within 20 minutes of T&C.

[ReloMom09]

Thanks for the quick reply. We are looking in the 500-750K range. I prefer the inner suburbs ; my husband the outer, newer suburbs. So from that perspecive we are pretty flexible.

[nettiefromnc]

Hi Relomom,

We relocated to St. Louis from North Carolina last year. We ended up in Ladue schools for my younger kids and we like it a lot. We live very close to Clayton which also has good schools. Unfortunately, the housing is very pricey in these inner suburbs but you can definitely find something in your range (though not as much house as what you would get in the outer suburbs or St. Louis city). As far as private schools, we looked at Visitation, Villa, Whitfield, MICDS, and John Burroughs for our oldest. There are many more good private and public options in St. Louis so best of luck with your research!

Nettie

[ReloMom09]

Thank you, Nettie.

We've heard good things about both Clayton and Ladue.
A couple of questions -- do you like living in Ladue? Where does your oldest attend school? How old is he/she?

I really appreciate the input! This is such a big decision...

[wustu87]

The public high schools will most likely be bigger than your desired numbers. The Parkway High Schools all tend to graduate 300-400 students a year, and Ladue is almost at 300 now and it is likely to surpass that number for your childrens' classes (it is still growing). Clayton is slightly smaller than Ladue, graduating about 200-250 students a year. You will find better luck with smaller classes with the privates. Our oldest is in college now, but our youngest is at Ladue Middle School and likes it a lot. They offer a lot more challenging classes in middle school than where my older child attended, and Ladue Horton Watkins High offers just about every AP/Honors class imaginable. The only public high schools I know of in the area that offers the IB program are Lindbergh, another good school but with a graduating class of well over 400, and Metro High, the top magnet school in the city which is tiny (graduating class < 100).

[aragx6]

I agree with Wu -- the very well respected and the well respected public high schools in the area really all have more in the 300-500 range of students. Clayton might be the only example I can think of that's smaller -- Parkway, Ladue, Webster Groves, Kirkwood, Pattonville, Francis Howell, Rockwood -- all are considerably larger than you were looking for.

[nettiefromnc]

Our oldest daughter decided on John Burroughs for middle school even before we found a house here. JBS is an independent private school for boys and girls grades 7 - 12. If I had known we were going to end up in Ladue, I would have had her try out the public schools first (or at least given them some consideration). The public elementary school has been a very good option for my younger kids. We were used to the public schools where we lived in NC, which didn't have a good reputation.

I like where we are in Ladue on the border of Clayton. It is a very walkable area and close to shopping, restaurants and the doctor's office. Our neighborhood is mostly working professionals and some retirees. Probably half the kids on our street go to public school, most of the rest go to Catholic school, a couple to private schools like MICDS and Forsyth. I imagine in some of the wealthier areas of Ladue, most would go to private school(?).

Hope that helps a little,
Nettie

[ReloMom09]

Thank You!

I can't tell you (Nettie and everyone) how much this input helps... It also gives some insight to St. Louis as a community. It's obvious that there are a lot of helpful souls to be found there!

We are taking a trip to STL before deciding on the job offer. We will likely check out/visit the Clayton and Ladue districts as well as one or two in the outer suburbs.

Does anyone have any comments on either the Brentwood or Webster Groves areas?

[mc378]

Brentwood has some of the highest test scores and academic achievement in the State. It is a great little school district with an intimate feel. Many successful professionals (business-owners, lawyers, doctors, etc.) live within the City of Brentwood, and they have no heistancy sending their kids to the Brentwood schools.

I do not know quite as much about Webster Groves' schools, although I do know several outstanding students who graduated from the district and are doing well in their chosen careers.

Between the two of them, I would choose Brentwood.