Parents - would you give a false address...

[purrfectpear]

I had a child (now 25), and I would have sent him to the "crappy" school or worked an extra job to pay for private. Sometimes that's just what life hands you.

By the way, I'm not sure I understand buying in the "right district" because I thought most cities still had forced bussing lotteries? I was lucky that my son was never chosen to be bussed (and believe me those inner city schools were pretty scary), but if he had, I'd have worked two jobs and put him in a private school. As a single mom it would have been quite a sacrifice, but I'm not going to be too sympathetic to someone living in a gated community who thinks lying is preferrable to working more hours

Also she claims the RE lied to her, but I've never known anyone who bought a house that didn't read the property description in MLS which clearly states the district that the home is in for grade, middle, and high schools. Not saying they can't be redistricted later, but sheesh...can't she read?

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 8/22/2008 5:59:42 PM
Author: purrfectpear
I had a child (now 25), and I would have sent him to the 'crappy' school or worked an extra job to pay for private. Sometimes that's just what life hands you.

By the way, I'm not sure I understand buying in the 'right district' because I thought most cities still had forced bussing lotteries? I was lucky that my son was never chosen to be bussed (and believe me those inner city schools were pretty scary), but if he had, I'd have worked two jobs and put him in a private school. As a single mom it would have been quite a sacrifice, but I'm not going to be too sympathetic to someone living in a gated community who thinks lying is preferrable to working more hours

Also she claims the RE lied to her, but I've never known anyone who bought a house that didn't read the property description in MLS which clearly states the district that the home is in for grade, middle, and high schools. Not saying they can't be redistricted later, but sheesh...can't she read?

purrfectpear, I don't know the whole story. I am not sure if it got re-zoned or what. And some MLS listings say to check the district (I know because I have been reading listings for 2+ years).

swingirl, I think she said something about no parent participation in the other school, which she felt made a huge difference. My friend can be a drama queen sometimes, so it's hard to say.

swimmer, great post thanks. I went to school in a very affluent area and I saw plenty of the problems that you mention. There are good schools with bad teachers and vice versa. But I do think sometimes "bad" schools have issues that good schools do not. For instance, my friend is a teacher in the Compton School District. He loves his kids and they love him (it's middle school). He told me something that I found quite interesting...he said many teachers there do not assign homework...not because they try to do everything in class, but when these kids go home their parents don't make them do it and they don't want to do it, so no one does homework! He says it's an exercise in futility assigning it. So I guess plenty of good teachers give up on stuff like this because there is no support in the community.

 

[diamondfan]

I would never falsify papers nor do my kids work. If one does that, the kid loses out as they are not likely to be able to continue that level of work. I do not think it helps a kid in the long run to get short cuts to things and not have to do the work.

I recall my tenth grader''s 4th grade science fair. I told him I would assist and support whatever he wanted BUT he had to come up with it and be able to articulate it enough to get the stuff. We worked together but he did the work and the design, I took him to get supplies and supervised. When we walked in, the stuff was CLEARLY mostly done by adults. My son got really upset as it was so clear that most of the kids in the grade did little or no work on their projects. He thought his sucked, and I tried to explain to him that he did what was in the scope of his abilities and he should never be ashamed of it.

I would get college prep tutoring and I would have someone assist him with applications and essays. I would not allow him to lie about his accomplishments, and I do not need to as he is a great and well rounded kid. But let me tell that my old nanny (in L.A.) has a niece and her school district was AWFUL. She was waiting for her mom one day at 3:30 pm and a gang fight broke out, a kid was shot at out on the sidewalk maybe 25 feet from her, and the kid was in a coma and suffered brain damage. This was the third incident in less than a month. Her mother pulled her out and they moved with us to Philly within weeks, joining her sister, my nanny. They rented a small apartment in the area, my nanny''s sister got a job near by and her daughter got to go to a safe and great public high school. (not to say kids do not get into stuff at any school, they can and do, but no one was getting shot at or killed).

I am not a dishonest person and would never encourage cheating in my kids. When we travel and buy handbags and jewelry we always declare it, never cheat on our taxes, etc. But would I steal food for my kids to eat if I could not get a job or feed them? You bet. But I think it is naive to think a family can move and get tutors etc, some people might be able to but I have hired tutors in the past for extra support and moving and all that is expensive. No child should have to be unsafe or get a totally inadequate education. I pay lots of school taxes and my kids do not even utilize our local public school. I think it is easy to take a moral high ground but if a kid''s school years are bad, a lot of bad things can occur, and while I do not think merely putting a kid in a good school guarantees anything, it cannot hurt. Again, I would also be clear with my kid, and make sure they know this is a last resort...and I would exhaust all possibilities first, and see if I could get a waiver, especially if the district changed the boundaries on my home midway through my kids schooling.

 

[LuckyTexan]

Date: 8/22/2008 12:08:32 PM
Author: Pandora II

Date: 8/22/2008 10:34:01 AM
Author: LuckyTexan

Date: 8/22/2008 8:25:01 AM
Author: purrfectpear
Of course not. I don''t lie on my taxes, steal from the grocery store, or shoplift clothing either

Having children is not a license to lose your integrity. Worse yet, the lie doesn''t stop with you. As another poster pointed out, you force your children to lie. Now there''s a lesson they won''t teach your kids even in the worst school district.

EXACTLY!!!!

I would get a job stocking shelves in the middle of the night at Wal Mart to pay for a private school before I''d lie to get them into a ''better'' public school... thankfully I won''t have to do either... but gosh. I''m honestly wondering what these people think they are going to get that''s so much better... your kid can get into just as much trouble at a good school as they can at a lower rated one!

I had kids having sex, and doing drugs around me at my private CHRISTIAN school!

At the end of the day... you have raise your children with honesty and integrity and as scary as it is... send them out into the REAL world, with the tools neccessary to succeed.

Thinking that you are going to make sure they grow up the way you want, by putting them into a higher rated public school is quite niave in my opinion... you have to raise your kids yourself!

If you don''t think they are learning enough at the school they are zoned to attend... get them a set of encyclopedias!!!

(all YOU''s are generic... I''m not directing this at anyone here)

I don''t really agree with this.

I''m a school governor in my local area. The majority of children at the school I''m a governor for don''t speak English as a first language - over 40 languages are spoken at home by the kids - a lot of the children come from war zones where they have seen terrible things (and we don''t have the services available to give them the psychological help they need).

The vast majority come from homes where the parents or normally parent have no qualifications, don''t value education and really don''t give a monkeys about their offspring.

In the latest public exams taken at age 16, 35% achieved 5 passes. The school I went to 100% achieved 5 passes and 99% achieved 10 passes.

This particular school has an amazing headmistress who does the best she can, and is also one of the best schools in the area.

I feel sorry for the children, and I know I should be celebrating diversity etc etc, but frankly I want my children to mix with kids whose parents care about them and value education.

I also want them to attend a school where success is the norm rather than the exception, and I will (legally) do whatever I have to to ensure that they get the best I can give them.

I don''t think we are really comparing apples with apples here. I''m talking about people trying to get a child put in a school that has more money, because it''s in a nicer area, and has better test scores... likely because of the fact that they have more money...

It sounds like you live somewhere that has WAY WORSE issues than that!

 

[swingirl]

When I said to get involved and volunteer I wasn''t referring to volunteering in the classroom. I meant attend school board meetings, run for school board positions, have a say in how the money is spent, offer your time to support clubs, athletic events, dances, etc.

Our schools'' volunteers do everything from plant trees, put on fundraisers like garage sales and car washes, start Script programs, create school websites, work the lunch lines, and attend city and county meetings to let their voice be heard. It sends a message to the kids that community involvement is better than lying.

 

[Miranda]

Date: 8/22/2008 12:30:12 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 8/22/2008 12:21:58 PM
Author: Miranda
Tgal - why won''t your friend consider private school? I''d think it would be a better alternative than teaching her child to lie. Did she know she was moving into a bad school district when she bought the house? I don''t mean to sound unsympathetic to your friend, but, this situation isn''t black and white. Her two only options are not only lying and sending her kid to the ''good'' school or telling the truth and sending the child to a ''bad'' school.

We can all make excuses and justify anything especially in the name of religion and children, LOL. In the end, IMO, it''s wrong to lie and steal.

She made a very stupid mistake when she bought her house. She thought she was buying in the right zone (the realtor told her it was) but her area has funky zoning where they have to go to the other school. She didn''t check the facts herself (she is not from the area). Her child was probably only a year old when they bought, so maybe they weren''t thinking about it hard enough. This honestly surprised me...my friend is normally very thorough and I can''t believe she would have taken the real estate agent''s word for it.

I actually sent her an email this morning just wondering how she handles the lying and all that goes with it with her kids. When she responds, I''ll ask her about the private school.

Like I said, the fact that she lied irritates me. But it irritates me more that I would be tempted to do the same. For the people here who said they would not do it, I am curious as to how many have kids as they write it. If I didn''t have a kid, I wouldn''t even think twice about this issue.

Well that''s a bummer. Seriously, the mortgage/real estate biz has a lot of shady characters. It''s too bad. It gives the good guys a bad name.

In case you or she needs help, here''s a great resource for ''casing'' schools. It has been invaluable to me in my home searches. http://www.cde.ca.gov/ I''m assuming she''s in LA or CA of course. Click the Accountability Progress Reporting tab. From there you can see the district level API results, the school level reports, the similar school ranking, etc. If private school isn''t an option perhaps she can look into a transfer to her same school or at least one that isn''t as bad as the school she is assigned to. My school district has an open transfer policy that applies to all schools within the district as long as they are not over or above capacity. Haha, can you tell I''ve been worried about your friend''s conscience all day, lol!? And all while at Sea World no less.

There are so many other options besides lying. Many people just don''t know about them.

 

[pennquaker09]

In Hoover, where I went to high school, we had this problem quite a bit. A lot of parents wanted to send their kids to Hoover High because of the academics and in the case of a lot of the guys, the football program. I know that they make parents show a lease or deed AND a utility bill with the name of one of the parents in order to register a student for Hoover City Schools.

 

[fisherofmengirly]

Schools sometimes check those things out pretty hardcore. I''d not want to risk it.

 

[Ellen]

Date: 8/21/2008 11:40:08 PM
Author: Haven
How are the ''liars'' found out? I''m very curious now, as I''ve never seen this happen in real life.

I could not agree more with you, Neatfreak. When hubby and I were house-hunting we found all these neighborhoods with monster homes that were extremely affordable, but it always came down to the location and the school district. I''m glad we chose a small home in an outstanding area rather than the opposite way around. In fact, my parents did the same thing for us girls when we were young, they moved us out to this teeny tiny home in a knockout school district, and we certainly benefited from the move.

I haven''t read the whole thread, in case someone specifically answered this. But they do have their ways, this happened in my hometown, and it was more than one person falsifying info. In fact there were several, the reason for it is explained at the end of this post.


To answer the question, I was in this very position. I even had a rental house in the "better" school zone, but I simply couldn''t do it. It was lying.

Luckily it was a middle school, so only 3 years there (not that that made it totally ok). The school "slid" inbetween my middle one and youngest, it wasn''t bad for the first two kids. I didn''t like it, but I just couldn''t do it, though the thought obviously crossed my mind.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 8/23/2008 12:40:26 AM
Author: Miranda
Well that''s a bummer. Seriously, the mortgage/real estate biz has a lot of shady characters. It''s too bad. It gives the good guys a bad name.

In case you or she needs help, here''s a great resource for ''casing'' schools. It has been invaluable to me in my home searches. http://www.cde.ca.gov/ I''m assuming she''s in LA or CA of course. Click the Accountability Progress Reporting tab. From there you can see the district level API results, the school level reports, the similar school ranking, etc. If private school isn''t an option perhaps she can look into a transfer to her same school or at least one that isn''t as bad as the school she is assigned to. My school district has an open transfer policy that applies to all schools within the district as long as they are not over or above capacity. Haha, can you tell I''ve been worried about your friend''s conscience all day, lol!? And all while at Sea World no less.

There are so many other options besides lying. Many people just don''t know about them.

Ha Miranda, too funny.

It''s a moot point when it comes to my friend at the moment...things have calmed and her kid will continue going to the same school. She is not in LA, but she is in California.

She emailed back and wanted to talk about it, since she wanted to discuss it via the phone instead of email. She says right or wrong, she would answer my questions as best she could. So I''ll update this thread maybe in a couple of weeks as I have to go on a business trip starting tomorrow.

And thanks for the cool links!

 

[phoenixgirl]

I wouldn't lie, but I might buy or rent the cheapest possible property in another district.

I am both a public school teacher and somebody who lives in an undesirable school district (the city). We moved two blocks from our condo in the gentrified, ritziest city district and now our new district is really not an option. I have met likeminded people who are sending their kids to the elementary school in the hopes of improving it, but I don't want my future kids to be the guinea pigs in such an experiment. Our neighbors down the block somehow got their kids into the best elementary school through a lottery or waiting outside the school all night or something, but if that didn't work out, then I would consider renting a place. We'd have a bonafied address that we'd be paying for so I don't consider that cheating the system. But even getting your kids into the next district's elementary school still leaves undesirable middle and high school options. There are the magnet/specialty programs but those are usually small programs in the midst of a scary, underperforming school.

I grew up in the suburbs, but I can see raising kids in the city. They would have a different experience than I did, but not in a bad way. BUT of the three schools I've worked at or student taught at, I'd only send my kids to one of them, and those are all in the suburbs and they rank much better than these city schools.

I'd also consider private school, although of course as a public school teacher I feel kind of like a traitor.

I went to the best of the best public high schools. Our top five went to Harvard, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Princeton. The top five at the school where I teach tend to go to Top State School, Medium State School, Medium State School, So-So State School, So-So State School. Giving my kids an exciting urban childhood is the craziest I'm willing to get . . . I can't see taking away the ice cream truck and riding your bike around the neighborhood AND a successful schooling experience. We can make up for the ice cream truck by walking the five blocks to the shopping/eating district and getting some delicious all natural home-made ice cream, and we can make up for bike riding in the street with bike riding in the city park systems, but there's really no making up for 13 years of mediocre schooling.

 

[Miranda]

Date: 8/23/2008 3:15:27 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 8/23/2008 12:40:26 AM
Author: Miranda
Well that''s a bummer. Seriously, the mortgage/real estate biz has a lot of shady characters. It''s too bad. It gives the good guys a bad name.

In case you or she needs help, here''s a great resource for ''casing'' schools. It has been invaluable to me in my home searches. http://www.cde.ca.gov/ I''m assuming she''s in LA or CA of course. Click the Accountability Progress Reporting tab. From there you can see the district level API results, the school level reports, the similar school ranking, etc. If private school isn''t an option perhaps she can look into a transfer to her same school or at least one that isn''t as bad as the school she is assigned to. My school district has an open transfer policy that applies to all schools within the district as long as they are not over or above capacity. Haha, can you tell I''ve been worried about your friend''s conscience all day, lol!? And all while at Sea World no less.

There are so many other options besides lying. Many people just don''t know about them.

Ha Miranda, too funny.

It''s a moot point when it comes to my friend at the moment...things have calmed and her kid will continue going to the same school. She is not in LA, but she is in California.

She emailed back and wanted to talk about it, since she wanted to discuss it via the phone instead of email. She says right or wrong, she would answer my questions as best she could. So I''ll update this thread maybe in a couple of weeks as I have to go on a business trip starting tomorrow.

And thanks for the cool links!

No problem! Those links may come in handy while you are house shopping!

 

[akw94]

Date: 8/21/2008 8:38:03 PM
Author:TravelingGal
...if it meant your child would be able to attend a much better school?

Hi TGal,
No, I wouldn''t give a false address. Even though I understand the reasoning of doing so, I don''t think it''s right. I couldn''t justify it to my child and it''s likely at some point, they''d have to know what you''re doing. Whether they have to fill out some paper at school using the false address or they are part of the lie when the school district comes to check if you really live at that address... and yes, the school districts do check to see if you really live there. Not only are you giving a false address, you''re probably also giving a false lease or some other paperwork to verify that you live in that area. You can''t just provide an address and the school district accepts that.
I was in this very situation and decided to move so that my son could attend a better school. I know that everyone can''t do that but I don''t think it justifies lying. Just my opinion (and sorry if I was repetitive, haven''t read through the whole thread).

 

[asscherisme]

No, its illegal!

 

[Diamond Confused]

Date: 8/22/2008 3:22:23 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 8/22/2008 3:16:54 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/22/2008 3:29:18 AM
Author: swingirl
Our schools are are very full and when someone enrolls who lives outside the district it means someone who is in the district gets displaced. It also means the school gets more crowded and has less money to spend per child. Choosing a school district is part of choosing a neighborhood and house you can afford. If you buy a house in an area where the schools are lousy you probably paid less for your house. I chose a smaller house in a good school district and then made the schools even better by volunteering, donating money, going to PTA meetings, and working to improve what needed improvement.

I totally agree with this. We paid much more than average for our house to be in one of the best school districts in the country - since our property and tax values are so much higher, I think that we in effect ''pay'' for the better schools. If I lived in a crappy school district, I would move.

I agree with this too. Which is why my friend''s situation is kind of perplexing to me. They are in an exclusive gated community and she has a very nice house. She pays a lot for property taxes I am sure. So how is it that she is zoned to this ''crappy'' school? I am wondering if she is exaggerating or if it is really that bad.

My sister wanted to buy a house she fell in love with which was by no means in a bad neighborhood (cheapest house in the are is about $800K). She decided not to because the elementary school is bordering on crap. My parent''s house are a mile down the street and they are zoned at a different school that is rated one of the top in southern CA. The prices of the homes in the neighborhood are about the same though. I don''t get what makes one school bad and one good if they are in the same type of neighborhood. I see what your friend is talking about

 

[vespergirl]

Date: 8/22/2008 3:22:23 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 8/22/2008 3:16:54 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/22/2008 3:29:18 AM
Author: swingirl
Our schools are are very full and when someone enrolls who lives outside the district it means someone who is in the district gets displaced. It also means the school gets more crowded and has less money to spend per child. Choosing a school district is part of choosing a neighborhood and house you can afford. If you buy a house in an area where the schools are lousy you probably paid less for your house. I chose a smaller house in a good school district and then made the schools even better by volunteering, donating money, going to PTA meetings, and working to improve what needed improvement.

I totally agree with this. We paid much more than average for our house to be in one of the best school districts in the country - since our property and tax values are so much higher, I think that we in effect ''pay'' for the better schools. If I lived in a crappy school district, I would move.

I agree with this too. Which is why my friend''s situation is kind of perplexing to me. They are in an exclusive gated community and she has a very nice house. She pays a lot for property taxes I am sure. So how is it that she is zoned to this ''crappy'' school? I am wondering if she is exaggerating or if it is really that bad.

Unfortunately, that type of thing happens a lot - in fact, it''s happening in the neighborhood next to mine right now. On average, the houses in my neighborhood cost $100 - $150K more than in the neighborhood next to ours, with the "not as desirable" school (lower test scores, graduation rates, and less English speakers). However, they are trying to rezone right now, to send kids in our neighborhood to the not-as-good school. My particular household won''t be affected, but our neighbors a mile down the road are really angry that they spent an extra $150K to live in the better school district, and now the county is trying to make the other high school better by sending our high-acheiving kids there to raise the school''s ranking. If they tried to rezone again to affect my kid in particular, I''d be raising holy hell, because we specifically picked a house that we paid WAY more for, for the sole purpose of having our son attend a superior school. It''s really unfair that the counties will often mess with zoning to make their failing schools look better by forcing kids from better neighborhoods into bad schools. I think the more likely effect will be that those kids are going to get dragged down into the drug and gang problems that exist in the poorer schools.

 

[Miranda]

Date: 8/25/2008 2:09:48 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/22/2008 3:22:23 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 8/22/2008 3:16:54 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/22/2008 3:29:18 AM
Author: swingirl
Our schools are are very full and when someone enrolls who lives outside the district it means someone who is in the district gets displaced. It also means the school gets more crowded and has less money to spend per child. Choosing a school district is part of choosing a neighborhood and house you can afford. If you buy a house in an area where the schools are lousy you probably paid less for your house. I chose a smaller house in a good school district and then made the schools even better by volunteering, donating money, going to PTA meetings, and working to improve what needed improvement.

I totally agree with this. We paid much more than average for our house to be in one of the best school districts in the country - since our property and tax values are so much higher, I think that we in effect ''pay'' for the better schools. If I lived in a crappy school district, I would move.

I agree with this too. Which is why my friend''s situation is kind of perplexing to me. They are in an exclusive gated community and she has a very nice house. She pays a lot for property taxes I am sure. So how is it that she is zoned to this ''crappy'' school? I am wondering if she is exaggerating or if it is really that bad.

Unfortunately, that type of thing happens a lot - in fact, it''s happening in the neighborhood next to mine right now. On average, the houses in my neighborhood cost $100 - $150K more than in the neighborhood next to ours, with the ''not as desirable'' school (lower test scores, graduation rates, and less English speakers). However, they are trying to rezone right now, to send kids in our neighborhood to the not-as-good school. My particular household won''t be affected, but our neighbors a mile down the road are really angry that they spent an extra $150K to live in the better school district, and now the county is trying to make the other high school better by sending our high-acheiving kids there to raise the school''s ranking. If they tried to rezone again to affect my kid in particular, I''d be raising holy hell, because we specifically picked a house that we paid WAY more for, for the sole purpose of having our son attend a superior school. It''s really unfair that the counties will often mess with zoning to make their failing schools look better by forcing kids from better neighborhoods into bad schools. I think the more likely effect will be that those kids are going to get dragged down into the drug and gang problems that exist in the poorer schools.

Oh vespergirl...It''s a nightmare!!! We were dealing with this exact situation from Oct to Jan! We had lawyers involved, safety experts, etc. It''s a long road. I don''t want to threadjack, but, if I can be of any help to you or anyone you know, just start a thread. My best advice to you or anyone dealing with this is to read the district policy on boundary changes and then read your state policy on boundary changes. Federal regulations also come into play depending on the area. Federal policy takes priority over state, and state over district policy. I don''t want to scare you, but, if you are in the general area you might want to get informed. If the initial group of homes puts up too much of a fuss the district may go after another group hoping for less trouble. That''s what happened here.

 

[swingirl]

It seems the boundary thing is happening everywhere. The govt is putting pressure on school districts to raise their test scores and the only way they can improve the numbers is by snagging high-achieving students and send them to low-achieving schools. It is unfair especially since it doesn''t address helping the low-achieving students, it just changes the numbers.

 

[vespergirl]

Date: 8/25/2008 2:20:49 PM
Author: Miranda

Date: 8/25/2008 2:09:48 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/22/2008 3:22:23 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 8/22/2008 3:16:54 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/22/2008 3:29:18 AM
Author: swingirl
Our schools are are very full and when someone enrolls who lives outside the district it means someone who is in the district gets displaced. It also means the school gets more crowded and has less money to spend per child. Choosing a school district is part of choosing a neighborhood and house you can afford. If you buy a house in an area where the schools are lousy you probably paid less for your house. I chose a smaller house in a good school district and then made the schools even better by volunteering, donating money, going to PTA meetings, and working to improve what needed improvement.

I totally agree with this. We paid much more than average for our house to be in one of the best school districts in the country - since our property and tax values are so much higher, I think that we in effect ''pay'' for the better schools. If I lived in a crappy school district, I would move.

I agree with this too. Which is why my friend''s situation is kind of perplexing to me. They are in an exclusive gated community and she has a very nice house. She pays a lot for property taxes I am sure. So how is it that she is zoned to this ''crappy'' school? I am wondering if she is exaggerating or if it is really that bad.

Unfortunately, that type of thing happens a lot - in fact, it''s happening in the neighborhood next to mine right now. On average, the houses in my neighborhood cost $100 - $150K more than in the neighborhood next to ours, with the ''not as desirable'' school (lower test scores, graduation rates, and less English speakers). However, they are trying to rezone right now, to send kids in our neighborhood to the not-as-good school. My particular household won''t be affected, but our neighbors a mile down the road are really angry that they spent an extra $150K to live in the better school district, and now the county is trying to make the other high school better by sending our high-acheiving kids there to raise the school''s ranking. If they tried to rezone again to affect my kid in particular, I''d be raising holy hell, because we specifically picked a house that we paid WAY more for, for the sole purpose of having our son attend a superior school. It''s really unfair that the counties will often mess with zoning to make their failing schools look better by forcing kids from better neighborhoods into bad schools. I think the more likely effect will be that those kids are going to get dragged down into the drug and gang problems that exist in the poorer schools.

Oh vespergirl...It''s a nightmare!!! We were dealing with this exact situation from Oct to Jan! We had lawyers involved, safety experts, etc. It''s a long road. I don''t want to threadjack, but, if I can be of any help to you or anyone you know, just start a thread. My best advice to you or anyone dealing with this is to read the district policy on boundary changes and then read your state policy on boundary changes. Federal regulations also come into play depending on the area. Federal policy takes priority over state, and state over district policy. I don''t want to scare you, but, if you are in the general area you might want to get informed. If the initial group of homes puts up too much of a fuss the district may go after another group hoping for less trouble. That''s what happened here.

Thanks Miranda! I''m in Fairfax County, VA, and with the amount of lawyers per capita living in our area (it''s a DC suburb), I think a lawsuit is already in the works. The redistricting is happening about 5 miles from us, and it''s not supposed to hit my particular neighborhood, so we''re just siiting tight here now hoping that they''ll leave our community alone. The problem is really with the middle schools and high schools, though, and since my son is not even 2 yet, we still have some years before we have to worry about that But, my husband and I have already talked about it, and if we have to move to another neighborhood in 10 years to get him into a better school system by the time he hits high school, we will just do that.

 

[TravelingGal]

OK, update (because I know you inquiring minds would wanna know...)

My friend called me to tell me the scoop because last I heard, she had done some creative copying and was able to give the school another utility bill in their name and all was "well."

I guess all was not really fine because the school called the utility company to verify, and of course found out she had falsified the bill. The school was very nice about it, but BFF''s daughter had to leave the school for good at the end of that school day. The school told BFF that they would not tell DD anything, which my friend obviously appreciated.

A couple of things...apparently DD knew all long they were using a different address but not much more mentioned. My BFF said that perhaps she was naive, but she didn''t hide it in the sense that she invited DD''s friends over and wasn''t too concerned about them being found out in that way. She didn''t want her daughter to have to lie about it.

Anyway, she sat DD down and explained to her that they have to go to the school for the address in which they live and they can''t break those rules. She told DD she could choose what she would like to do. A) Go to a school much like her current one (which is the "bad" school in question) B) be homeschooled half the time and attend class half the time (a new academy up in their area), or C) go to a school like the current one, but smaller (full private school). DD chose to be homeschooled half and go to academy.

Of course, DD did cry and was upset, but BFF assured her they would have lots of playdates with DD''s current friends. My BFF is very verbose

and spent a good hour saying this was a blessing in disguise because she is SO impressed with the new academy and blah blah blah but that she is nervous about whether she will be good enough to homeschool blah blah blah and that DD will have to blah blah blah and doesn''t have to blah blah blah. You get the picture.

She admits it was wrong, and I guess she is glad she got "caught." With her DS, who is to start school next year, she will apply to go to a different school (not the "best" school DD was going to, but another one that isn''t AS good, but still decent and has an interdistrict transfer program) and if that doesn''t work out, will do the homeschool/academy thing that DD is doing.

I asked her questions like: if she was to have legitimately have her DD at the good school, would she not be annoyed that the school was overenrolled by 70 students, some of which may not belong there. She was honest in her answers and admitted a lot. She did tell me that her DH was annoyed because they DO pay taxes into the good school district and not the bad one. Zoning is weird...by the time DD gets into junior high, she will be zoned to go to the school with the good school''s students again.

All in all, she said she learned her lesson and considers herself very fortunate. I''m actually glad she got caught...it''s always good to be reminded there are consquences for your actions.

 

[Miranda]

Date: 9/22/2008 12:53:05 PM
Author: TravelingGal
OK, update (because I know you inquiring minds would wanna know...)

My friend called me to tell me the scoop because last I heard, she had done some creative copying and was able to give the school another utility bill in their name and all was ''well.''

I guess all was not really fine because the school called the utility company to verify, and of course found out she had falsified the bill. The school was very nice about it, but BFF''s daughter had to leave the school for good at the end of that school day. The school told BFF that they would not tell DD anything, which my friend obviously appreciated.

A couple of things...apparently DD knew all long they were using a different address but not much more mentioned. My BFF said that perhaps she was naive, but she didn''t hide it in the sense that she invited DD''s friends over and wasn''t too concerned about them being found out in that way. She didn''t want her daughter to have to lie about it.

Anyway, she sat DD down and explained to her that they have to go to the school for the address in which they live and they can''t break those rules. She told DD she could choose what she would like to do. A) Go to a school much like her current one (which is the ''bad'' school in question) B) be homeschooled half the time and attend class half the time (a new academy up in their area), or C) go to a school like the current one, but smaller (full private school). DD chose to be homeschooled half and go to academy.

Of course, DD did cry and was upset, but BFF assured her they would have lots of playdates with DD''s current friends. My BFF is very verbose

and spent a good hour saying this was a blessing in disguise because she is SO impressed with the new academy and blah blah blah but that she is nervous about whether she will be good enough to homeschool blah blah blah and that DD will have to blah blah blah and doesn''t have to blah blah blah. You get the picture.

She admits it was wrong, and I guess she is glad she got ''caught.'' With her DS, who is to start school next year, she will apply to go to a different school (not the ''best'' school DD was going to, but another one that isn''t AS good, but still decent and has an interdistrict transfer program) and if that doesn''t work out, will do the homeschool/academy thing that DD is doing.

I asked her questions like: if she was to have legitimately have her DD at the good school, would she not be annoyed that the school was overenrolled by 70 students, some of which may not belong there. She was honest in her answers and admitted a lot. She did tell me that her DH was annoyed because they DO pay taxes into the good school district and not the bad one. Zoning is weird...by the time DD gets into junior high, she will be zoned to go to the school with the good school''s students again.

All in all, she said she learned her lesson and considers herself very fortunate. I''m actually glad she got caught...it''s always good to be reminded there are consquences for your actions.

Thanks for the update. I don''t know if you want to pursue this with your friend any further, but, if she is paying mello roos taxes she may have an option. If the school is overcrowded with all mello roos paying students there is nothing that can be done when the boundaries are redrawn. Your stuck where they put you. It sounds like this is the case. In the event that it is not, if she is paying mello roos taxes to the bond that pays for the school/grounds, etc. (in other words, not a general district bond) and there are kids going there that are not paying into that bond, she DOES have the right to go there. There are a lot of ifs here. The bond also needs to pay for at least 50% of the school. State policy takes precedence over district policy. It is a violation of state policy to send mello roos paying students to a mello roos funded school while there are non mello roos paying students attending. I''m assuming the district knows this and it is a non issue. I just thought I''d throw it out there as a last ditch effort.

Anyhow, at least your friend has a clear conscience now. The homeschool/academy school sounds great. I''d love that! I am missing my babies so much now that they are all in school. I''d love to have them home more. Oh, wait...Nevermind...Algebra 2 is tooooooo hard!