Southlake vs Fort Worth privates (Dallas, Austin: homes, neighborhoods, private schools)

[Laila2023]

Hello! We are considering a move to Southlake for work this summer or next (the timing is flexible). Our kid is a high-achieving student in a top-notch K-12 college prep school in our area, so I am a little concerned about the transition to a large public school in Southlake. Another option is to apply to private schools in Fort Worth (FWCD, TVS). Would love some insights on:

1. How do Carroll High schools compare with Fort Worth private upper schools in terms of academic rigor and admissions to selective colleges?
2. Which environment would be a better fit for a diverse (Asian) family? I have read the negative news about Southlake, but the school demographics seem to be more diverse at Carroll than FW privates, so not sure what to make of this.
3. Which areas/neighborhoods would offer a reasonable commute between Southlake and FW privates?

Thanks for your help!

[ChristieP]

What's your budget for housing?

There's a very similar discussion just a few threads down: https://www.city-data.com/forum/fort...h-76134-a.html You've already missed the application deadline for private schools, so that option is off the table. Short answer: there is no neighborhood that offers a reasonable commute between Southlake (in the far NE corner of Tarrant County) and the FW elite private schools in the center of the county. You'd be looking at 45 minutes each direction and it would all be done during peak rush hour traffic. For most people, that would be a hard pass.

[Reloc1234]

We are in a very similar situation with Job being in Fort Worth and considering between Fort Worth private and Southlake public. Since your job is in Southlake, Dallas area privates are also an option for you. You are probably too late to apply now but won't hurt to try.

[Laila2023]

Thanks for the helpful replies. Got some good insights from your responses and the other threads. Good luck with your move Reloc1234 - we are in a similar situation indeed!

[tcualum]

We used to live in Arlington off of 20. My younger son attends one of the private schools in Fort Worth. The commute between Arlington and school was miserable for the kids and me and it's a much better commute than Southlake to school. It was even worse when it was a half day or if there was an evening event at school. My kids also hated it because they couldn't easily get together with their friends. We ended up moving to Southwest Fort Worth. There's now a 5-minute commute to school and everyone is much happier. There are some really upscale neighborhoods in Fort Worth with gorgeous homes. Honestly, I don't see the point in moving to Southlake if you aren't going to send your kids to Southlake schools.

[jbb303]

There are a number of good private schools closer to Southlake - Liberty, Faith, Covenant, I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting. They might not have the prestige of the Fort Worth schools, but they're nothing to sneeze at, even if you might have the same admission issues for next school year. That said, I wouldn't count out Carroll if you want to live there. For all their dirty laundry that gets aired in public, it's still a really good district.

[Laila2023]

I need to be in Southlake for work. Sounds like there is no reasonable way to split the commute between Southlake and FW privates. I would appreciate some opinions on how Carroll compares with private schools with regard to academic rigor and college placement.

Are the AP/GT classes at Carroll High/Senior high comparable to upper school AP/honors classes at privates? Where do the top 5%, roughly the top 30-40 kids at Carroll go for college? Private schools publish their matriculations. Is there any way to access college placements for Carroll? Does Carroll have strong college counseling or do most families use private counselors?

Thank you all for your help.

[ChristieP]

Carroll ISD received a 98 out of possible 100 on the latest Texas accountability ratings. The link below shows you the ratings for all sorts of statistics, including demographics.
https://txschools.gov/?view=district...verview&lng=en

Here's the US News and World Report ratings for Carroll HS:
https://www.usnews.com/education/bes...h-school-18768

Looks like the 2022 Carroll HS valedictorian attended Harvard.
https://www.southlakeindependent.com...392546061.html
The 2022 Salutatorian attended University of Texas at Austin
https://www.southlakeindependent.com...de52c1aba.html

[carachel2]

Will your student be attending college in Texas?

I only ask because admissions at University of TX and Texas A&M are based on class rank.
For UT, admission is guaranteed if you are in the top 6% of the class BUT specifically you are not admitted automatically to competitive majors like business,engineering and computer science. Those admissions require a holistic review and are extremely competitive.

For Texas A&M automatic admission is for the top 10% but similar with admission to competitive majors.

It COULD be a strategy to find a good school but not *amazing* in competitiveness and go to that school and be the shining star if that makes sense.

Texas kids and parents start gaming the system from Day 1 (ok well, at least jr high) and class rank can be TOUGH to break into if you're moving in.

[ChristieP]

Originally Posted by carachel2

Texas kids and parents start gaming the system from Day 1 (ok well, at least jr high) and class rank can be TOUGH to break into if you're moving in.

This is 100% accurate.

Several years ago, my niece graduated #18 in her class of 500+ at a decent (but not ultra-competitive) high school. She got auto-admit to UT Austin, where she got a good scholarship and studied Social Work.

My manager's daughter graduated in the top 25% of her class at Prosper HS (very competitive) and the best Texas school she could get into was Stephen F Austin. She ended up going to the University of Arkansas who gave her a scholarship to match in-state tuition.