taitai

All:

I know this isn't 100% travel related but you all are so helpful, I was going to chance it. I will post in the lounge as well. I hope I have been a helpful enough poster over the last several years to get a pass on this one.

Anyway, my husband is considering a job opportunity in NYC that would require us to relocate. We are firm believers in public school and therefore need to live in the absolute best school district we can afford. I have a pretty good handle on Westchester schools but think, due to the location of his new office, that living in NJ might be an easier commute.

Thanks in advance for any help you could provide.

Taitai

nytraveler

Don;t know where he'll be working - and getting into the city - but Long Island has some of the best school districts in the country in areas within short train commute of Penn Station.

taitai

I would appreciate the names of those school districts so I can drill down and understand more about them. We certainly have not ruled Long Island out.

Thanks.
Taitai

capxxx

Princeton has good public schools.

zlaor

Mountain Lakes, NJ

aliska

When we moved to Ohio 8 years or so ago, I faced the same dilemma with our kids. I did a lot of research that was compiled by the State Education association of Ohio. The local school districts were rated and graded so you knew in advance what you were getting. Talk with the Education editor at local newspapers in the community you are researching. They can be a wealth of information for both past history and future plans. Consult with a realtor in the area. When we were considering the Atlanta area, the realtor had a printed and bound book describing local school districts, scores, etc. Ironically, it helped us decide NOT to move to Atlanta. Good luck!

lizziea06

Short Hills and Millburn feed into Millburn HS. It's an excellent school.

Ryan

Taitai,
As the parent of two small children, this is an issue we looked at when we moved a few years ago.

Despite it's many faults, NJ does have some outstanding school districts. More importantly, it has an excellant reporting system for school data that let's you evaluate every school in every district.

Here's the link:

http://education.state.nj.us/rc/rc06/index.html

I think the key issue is "the best school district we can afford." From top to bottom, the best school district in the state is Millburn/Short Hills. The high school year after year has the highest average SAT score of any school in the state. But here's the rub, the average house in Millburn is probably well north of $800,000. You can find the $500 to $600 house, but probably not many.

I think you need to be skeptical when people say they have "great schools" as that means different things to different people.

The cold hard fact is that the best districts in the state have approximately 25% to 30% of their students at all levels performing above average on standardized tests with less than 5% below average. That is the one commonality I've found when I looked at different towns. My uncle loves to say his son's town has great schools. The fact is his town has less than 5% above average at all levels.

NJ magazine also publishes list of the best public high schools in the state. I believe you can google it and get it for free.

I'd also suggest using the prunj.com website to scan for houses in your price range. Weichert's website is also helpful.

taitai

Thanks for all the replies. We are still early in our search but there are so many options that I am really trying to narrow it down and schools seems like the natural filter. I will explore the Short Hills/Millburn suggestion and go over the NJ Report Card for those schools. I very much appreciate all the advice and would welcome any other suggestions.

Taitai

nytraveler

School districts you might look at in Nassau would include Great Neck North and South, Manhasset, Herricks, Garden City and Roslyn.

As in New Jersey in these areas $500K (if you can find it) is a starter house, a "regular" house will be $800 to $900 - and a large house from $million - and up.

Budman

And not to forget about the property tax, which has to be the highest in the Nation.

sobster

Here are some LI school disricts to look into.Jericho, Half Hollow Hills, Harborfields, Elwood, Northport, Kings Park, Cold Spring Harbor. Bon voyage.

nytraveler

The latter list has good schools - but is a considerably longer - and more expensive - commute from the city.