Possible move to Boston/Cambridge--can someone walk me through the public schools?
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Anonymous
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Title really says it all. I'm facing a possible move to the Boston area (job split between Cambridge and just-across-the-river Boston). I've heard vaguely that schools in Cambridge are better. We have two kids in Elementary currently, but would ideally like to find a place that is good all the way through MS and HS.
Any suggestions on where we should live? Or not live? TIA! |
Anonymous
I lived in the Boston area for many years, any area around Cambridge or North Boston is going to be fine. If you are going to live outside of Boston I would definitely recommend the Andover or North Andover area. |
Anonymous
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Brookline, Newton, Belmont are near Cambridge and better school systems. If I could afford to live in Belmont I would. It’s beautiful!
Commutes up to an hour are normal in MA and right now a lot of people are working from home. Hopkinton is about 40 minutes from Cambridge, so maybe an hour when traffic is back to normal. It’s the best school system in the state though. It’s a suburban area. The marathon starts here. It’s beautiful and surrounded by lots of nature. Plenty of places to go for long walks in the woods and canoe/kayak. Westwood is one of the best districts in the state too and a similar commute to Hopkinton. Same with Dover-Sherborn. Dover is about 20 miles from Cambridge and is a top school district. I would avoid BPS. Cambridge isn’t the worst but you have better options. If you want to be super close to Cambridge I would choose Belmont to live. |
Anonymous
| Are you looking for private school or public school? In MA, towns and cities have their own school systems and the City of Boston has it's own system for its neighborhoods. There are many charter school and test-based schools available within the public system. |
Anonymous
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Thanks, all! I'd prefer public schools if possible (I've heard they're pretty good?). I've heard good things about Boston Latin School for HS, but it seems like there are multiple lotteries to get through at the ES/MS level before you can test in?
Hopkinton sounds great, but I'm not sure we want an hour commute. |
Anonymous
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Also, OP here again--I just realized this has been moved to the Boston forum (I did not know there was such a thing, had posted in the public school forum initially).
So, Bostonians, if it helps, a few more details: we will have a rising 3rd grader and a Ker. 3rd grader is doing advanced work, has good ("gifted") test results if they have a program like AAP. |
Anonymous
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OP. I have a severely sn kid in bps. My experience is very mixed and they are extremely stingy with services.
There are excellent schools and horrendous schools in the system. You'll do better overall in Brookline, Newton, etc. And I find services are extremely hit or miss. There's one OT for 300 students, if you don't like them the alternative js even worse. They never do out of district placement even when clearly warranted. You'll do better in any other system in MA. We are personally considering moving to NY or NJ since our child is suffering here. |
Anonymous
| Price range OP? Many areas of Boston are much more expensive than this area. |
Anonymous
I grew up in Belmont and loved it. I'd go back in a heart beat. So envy you, OP. My family/friends who are happiest with public schools live in Cambridge, Sherborn, and Hingham. That doesn't mean those are the best schools, of course, just that those folks have found what they value in the schools. The Cambridge family probably values diversity most, the Sherborn folks are very intent on academic excellence and rigor -- though they also complain about competitive culture, and the Hingham folks are pretty mellow (tipping my hat to you, cousin C  ).
Good luck, OP! |
Anonymous
| Check out Brookline or Newton. Both have excellent schools and are on the T so make for an easier commute in post-COVID times. Good luck! |
Anonymous
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OP, we moved last year from the DC area and we're now in Cambridge. My spouse can walk to work and we love the diversity and liveliness of this city (pre-Covid anyway).
Also, despite the general consensus to avoid public school here my kids (JK and 1st- love that there's a public JK!) have been loving it so far. They do have a lottery so if you don't want to deal with that this may not be the place for you, but my kids school (Graham & Parks) has actually been open 4 days a week since Oct. I don't know about the surrounding suburbs and their schools regarding closures, but I'm seriously in awe of the superintendent and all the staff's efforts to pull this off. I've heard that the high school here allows students in accelerated tracks to take pre-college courses in Harvard (which is very close to the high school) so while I know the high school garners mixed reviews, we are thinking of settling here long term. Fwiw we are not white so that has definitely contributed to our decision to start here instead of the suburbs with excellent school districts which people usually recommend. Just my 2c. |
Anonymous
| ^^that should've been 2 years ago -we relocated in early 2019 |
Anonymous
| Most people with means do not send their kids to BPS. Some stick it out, but it isn't easy. Not making any value judgments on whether you should or shouldn't, but just stating a fact. |
Anonymous
| Boston prices are no joke, in the desirable parts of the city and Cambridge you are probably looking at north of $2 million for a not huge property that would accommodate a family of four. You could probably find something larger in Newton/Belmont for $1.5, maybe less. |
Anonymous
Yes, that's the thing, you cannot "save" money on the Boston house and use the difference to go private. The Boston property will cost as much or more as a close-in suburb if you want to be in a decent area. We ran the numbers, it didn't make sense. |