Moving to WS, Insight on schools

[moving2ws]

My family is moving to the West Seattle neighborhood and would like to be near the Junction area, we are open though to different parts of the community, based on schools. Does anyone have a recommendation for the best schools? We prefer diversity and a creative bent.

Please help us decide where to focus on. Thank you.

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[WSB]

Some things are changing as Seattle Public Schools goes back to more centralized curriculum, rather than having a lot of schools that each specialize in something in particular. And of course WS has a vibrant private/parochial school community too.

Important question, though, no matter what – what age(s) is (are) your kid(s)? Just so people don’t offer opinions on elementaries, for example, if, say, it turns out you have middle/high-schooler(s).

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[moving2ws]

Good point. They will be in 2nd and 6th grades. Another thing is that private/parochial is not an option for us so, thanks, but keep those comments for others. Thanks for any feedback/advice.

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[jellyfish]

The Admiral junction (ie. Admiral/California Ave) is surrounded by lovely housing AND has highly regarded schools. So if you’re going public, there doesn’t seem to be any advantage in moving further South.

Anyway, for what it’s worth, below is my input about researching schools. My child is starting kindergarten this Fall, so all of the below is based on my own investigation. I apologize if none of this is helpful to you.

I have heard that Sanislo is diverse & has an excellent art teacher, but the neighborhoods around this school are less attractive than those in North West Seattle (fyi, I live near Sanislo). The school looks a bit dumpy on the outside, but is filled with art on the inside.

I am unsure which (or if particular) West Seattle public schools have a leg up on diversity and creativity. Any difference between schools may be reflected in $ obtained through the PTA (since curriculum in standardized), so for a strong arts program, you may want to search for a school with an involved parental community. The option school, Pathfinder, may fit the diversity/creativity bill, but the deadline for enrollment is March 31, 2010. Enrollment is granted to applicants based on a lottery system. If you currently live in Seattle somewhere else, have you submitted an enrollment application OR do you intend to prior to Mar 31st? If not, then an option school is not possible for your family in Fall 2010.

Our local elementary schools in the North West Seattle quadrant (including Admiral Junction): Lafayette, Schmitz park, Alki, West Seattle Elementary. West Seattle is considered a “failing school” by WASL standards, by the way (though maybe not in diversity/creativity? don’t know). Lafayette is considered to be an excellent school based on both standardized tests & having an involved parent community, but it may not be creative/diverse (don’t know, I’m sure parents will chime in)

map/websites:

http://www.seattleschools.org/area/m_schools/westseattlenorth.html

Our local elementary schools in the South West Seattle quadrant: Arbor Heights, Concord, Gatewood, Highland Park, Roxhill, and Sanislo

map/websites:

http://www.seattleschools.org/area/m_schools/westseattlesouth.html

Our local middle schools (6th-8th grade): Madison (in North region) and Denny (in South region).

A great way to get a feel for these schools (and I again apologize if you already know all this):

1) do a name search in the West Seattle blog forum, for there are many opinions already written in this blog;

2) search for info on websites:

school profiles (diversity, scores) — look at individual schools, both their websites and “Annual Reports”:

http://www.seattleschools.org/area/m_schools/index.dxml

parental input:

http://www.greatschools.org/

http://www.trulia.com/real_estate/Seattle-Washington/schools/

http://saveseattleschools.blogspot.com/

rankings based on test scores:

http://www.schooldigger.com/go/WA/schoolrank.aspx

shows diversity profiles in pie graph:

http://www.psk12.com/rating/USthreeRsphp/STATE_WA_level_Elementary_CountyID_0.html

general info in chart form (can compare schools):

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/schoolguide/

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[jellyfish]

Just for clarification, West Seattle has at least 3 “junctions”:

Morgan

Alaska

Admiral

Not sure which junction you’re considering…

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[WSAC]

Pathfinder springs to mind when you mention creativity and diversity. It’s a K-8 so both of your children could attend. We moved to the area 18 months ago and stumbled through a more traditional local school when we first arrived. Pathfinder has an amazing community with wonderful staff, students and families. They really get outside the classroom and instill a love of learning. The facility is beautiful too, nestled in a forest preserve which is used by the school as a rich resource for learning and exploring.

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[villagegreen]

“The Junction” means Alaska and California – we all know this. That’s why the city put up signs in that area that say “The Junction.” For those who live in Admiral or Morgan, you do not live in “The Junction.” If you really must, you may use the terms “Admiral Junction” and “Morgan Junction.”

Sorry, this is just a pet peeve of mine.

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[GenHillOne]

hahaha, and there are plenty of advantages to moving further south than Admiral; good links though!

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[DBurns]

I think it’s really important to choose schools that match your children and your entire family. I also think it’s really hard because the schools change a lot and so do our kids!

We had a really great experience at Sanislo and Denny. My son is still at Denny (7th) and my daughter graduated from there last year. The staff there is AWESOME. It has been a great experience during a not-so-great time in life (middle school:) They have an amazing music program and I assume that the diversity is unmatched anywhere else in WS. Mr. Clark says “Good Morning” in something like 22 languages every day. Not only do they have the cultural diversity in the school, but they celebrate it – thoughtfully chosen literature, monthly assemblies, art projects – it’s been consistently great. There is also a lot of economic diversity there which we feel is also very valueable in an environment. I think it will only get better with the new campus and the community “south of admiral” is lucky to have it.

On a side note, we ended up choosing a private high school for our daughter – just what worked for her – and she tested at 3 private high schools, did well and got in to all of them. We feel that Sanislo and Denny have educated our kids well.

Good Luck and Welcome to West Seattle!

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[moving2ws]

Wow, I really appreciate the input! I have read some articles about Pathfinder and that sounds like a really cool option. We are really excited about the move! And I love the Junction debate! LOL. Thanks again!

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