Thinking about Sparkle Lake

[Nu2This]

Originally Posted by RayMathewHomes

I definitely also have to add that Lakeland schools are much better than the reputation it once had. Take a look at where the graduating seniors of Panas and Lakeland have gone to in the last 2 years- Harvard, Yale, Cornell, MIT... all Ivy League. They've also done a good job holding down the school tax and they have not threatened layoffs or cuts like Yorktown recently announced.

It's quite a shame when buyers overlook Lakeland schools. But builders havent. Take a look at Hollowbrook, Cortlandt Chase, and Justin Ct. Very beautiful homes- mind you they are in Cortlandt and not Yorktown. But it definitely raises the caliber of students who are in the Lakeland schools.

My husband and I will definitely revisit this. Admittedly, we've overlooked exploring homes in that district due to its former reputation and older information. Could you recommend a site where we could get this kind of info? All of the searches I've done garners me info from about 2007. Thanks.

[RayMathewHomes]

I recommend going to the various school districts websites directly as the information can be found there:

www.lakelandschools.org

www.yorktowncsd.org

[Nu2This]

Excellent -- thanks!

[dma1250]

I recommend this site, its ratings seem pretty well-balanced:

GreatSchools - Public and Private School Ratings, Reviews and Parent Community

raymathewshomes, I have to question the idea that having so-called high-end McMansions in the area "raises the caliber of students" in the schools. Why? Because people who like granite counters and soaking tubs raise smarter kids than those who, say, have an old lakeside cottage around Mohegan Lake? I don't get it...

As far as I know Yorktown Central has not announced any service or staffing cuts so far. They are closing one of the 4 elementary schools and consolidating things in the 3 remaining schools--but there are no staff cuts or service cuts as part of that plan. The savings are from building costs. There has been a decrease in enrollment in the last few years, which is what makes the closing viable (and the same school was previously closed for a decade in the 80's). They've managed to keep tax increases to 2.5% or less the last few years, which is pretty good. Most districts in the state are facing cuts next year.

[Nu2This]

Thanks -- I'll check out those sites as well.
Also, could you identify any other suburban communities similar to Sparkle Lake and Countryside that we could look into?

[RayMathewHomes]

dma1250 does raise a good point and I have to revise my statement. My intention was to say builders are attracted to the area because of the quality of the schools. And you are correct to say having a nice house does not necessarily mean the caliber of the student will be greater.

As far as the comment about Yorktown school cuts, I simply was referencing the news. Here's one such article: North County News - Award winning local news for the Hudson Valley, NY (http://www.ncnlocal.com/news/ncn_news2.asp - broken link)

[dma1250]

Originally Posted by RayMathewHomes

dma1250 does raise a good point and I have to revise my statement. My intention was to say builders are attracted to the area because of the quality of the schools. And you are correct to say having a nice house does not necessarily mean the caliber of the student will be greater.

As far as the comment about Yorktown school cuts, I simply was referencing the news. Here's one such article: North County News - Award winning local news for the Hudson Valley, NY (http://www.ncnlocal.com/news/ncn_news2.asp - broken link)

I hadn't seen that most recent article, so I stand corrected since the district is evidently proposing cuts related to the closing of the fourth elementary school. I had attended the school district forum a few weeks ago when they announced the proposal to close French Hill and at that time there was no discussion of staff cuts. From what I just read, the cuts are in order to reduce the tax increase to 1.5%, down from the previously-planned 2.%5. Personally I think that is just stupid--I'd happily pay an extra $140 a year to keep all the staff. Nonetheless, the issue facing Yorktown is primarily one of no longer needing as much space due to lower enrollment-- it is not a matter of mismanagement, as RayMathewHomes seemed to be implying.

RE the idea that developers are attracted to the area for the schools, I really doubt that any developer is more attracted to building in Lakeland versus Yorktown or Hendrick Hudson or Croton. Right or not, Lakeland has the poorest rep of the four districts. The reason that area sees a lot of development is that land is realtively cheap and the Cortlandt town government pretty much lets anyone build anything anywhere.

But I was thinking about the original suggestion that having lots of new developments "raises the caliber of students" and I think there might be something there as far as test results go. After all, a child growing up in a new development is more likely to do well on standarized tests since they will be used to thiking in a rote, patterned, and essentially standardized manner. Having grown up in a place where all houses are basically the same, those kids will be more likely to accept the idea that there is just one "right" answer to any question.

[RayMathewHomes]

Originally Posted by dma1250

I hadn't seen that most recent article, so I stand corrected since the district is evidently proposing cuts related to the closing of the fourth elementary school. I had attended the school district forum a few weeks ago when they announced the proposal to close French Hill and at that time there was no discussion of staff cuts. From what I just read, the cuts are in order to reduce the tax increase to 1.5%, down from the previously-planned 2.%5. Personally I think that is just stupid--I'd happily pay an extra $140 a year to keep all the staff. Nonetheless, the issue facing Yorktown is primarily one of no longer needing as much space due to lower enrollment-- it is not a matter of mismanagement, as RayMathewHomes seemed to be implying..

It is clear that I never mentioned mismanagement nor did I imply mismanagement. ALL school districts are facing tough times.

To go back to the orignal poster and anyone looking at schools, the best advice is to look at school district websites, published standardized testing grades (often found on Lohud.com) and visit the schools for yourself. Other review sites like GreatSchools.org also provide another view of the school from parents and students you should consider in your decision making.