Guest Blogger and Realtor, Fiona Dogan

7 Tips for Evaluating a School District
 
Moving to the suburbs?  If so, finding a great home in an excellent school district may well be at the top of your priority list. Even if you don’t yet have school-age children, keep in mind that a community's highly-regarded public school system helps to ensure strong home prices and consistently high demand for property. Following are some tips to get you started on finding the right school district for your family:

1. Check out the school district Web site in the communities you are considering.  It should provide such comprehensive information as:
•    Number of schools in the district
•    Size of each school’s student and faculty body
•    Availability of learning support services and differentiated learning programs.
•    Detailed curriculum information
•    Disciplinary policies
•    Athletic offerings
•    Electives
•    Extra-curricular programs
•    PTO activities

2. Research the school districts you are interested in at helpful online sites such as Education.com and GreatSchools.org, which will enable you to compare statistics for schools and school districts, as well as link to local community information and parent blogs.

3.  Another invaluable site is the Institute of Educational Statistics at nces.ed.gov, which analyzes data related to education and allows you to search for public and private schools, colleges, and libraries in your preferred community.

4.  Evaluate and compare school districts in the towns you are looking at. Make sure to examine such indicators as:
•    Class size
•    Student-to-teacher ratio,
•    Standardized test results
•    Number and range of Advanced Placement (AP) courses
•    Average SAT/ACT scores
•    College matriculation results.

5.  Some progressive districts offer International Baccalaureate (IB) programs in high school geared toward preparing students for a global education, which is often of interest to parents from other countries.  
 
6.  Go see for yourself! Because you want to be thorough, I suggest that you be prepared to tour the schools you are interested in, interview faculty and administrators, and if possible, talk to parents about their experiences and recommendations.

7.  Ask your Realtor about local property values and how they relate to the public school district.  Your Realtor is prohibited by law from telling you whether a school is ìgoodî or not, and cannot not steer you to one district over another. However, he/she may be able to give you the benefit of his/her personal experience, and can certainly put you in touch with local district officials, principals, teachers, athletic coaches, and past and current clients.

Additional blogs by Fiona Dogan:   

"Your Move: Strategies for Picking The Right Town"
"Old World Charm or Brand New Construction?"
“Settling Into Your New Community With Ease”

Fiona Dogan is a Licensed Realtor in the Rye office of Julia B. Fee Sotheby’s International Realty. She is a Platinum Award winner and an Accredited Buyer Representative. For more information, please contact Fiona Dogan at: fiona.dogan@juliabfee.com.