Confused between Chattahoochee & Northview (how much, to buy, best schools)

[nanhi]

Hello,
Please provide your input of Chattahoochee vs Northview. Are there any parents out here who have experience of Northview high. Skeptical to buy in Northview because of extreme competition. Does it effect college acceptance? Great schools is the reason for relocation. I have a7th grader & a 1st grader. Please help. What extra does Northview offer that Chattahoochee doesn't? Which one to choose?Thanks

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by nanhi

Hello,
Please provide your input of Chattahoochee vs Northview. Are there any parents out here who have experience of Northview high. Skeptical to buy in Northview because of extreme competition. Does it effect college acceptance? Great schools is the reason for relocation. I have a7th grader & a 1st grader. Please help. What extra does Northview offer that Chattahoochee doesn't? Which one to choose?Thanks

I do know that Northview has a reputation of being much more academically-grueling while Chattahoochee has a reputation for being much more well-rounded (academics are very-important, but there is more of an emphasis on extracurricular activities and keeping a more level-headed social environment at Chattahoochee than at most other schools).

Hopefully some parents that have had more direct experiences with the two schools can chime in and shed some more light on the differences between the two schools.

[deacongirl]

Honestly I think this comes down to the individual kid and family when you are comparing two very good schools. I mean wouldn't that be like comparing Walton/Pope/Lassiter? They are all good schools. I doubt that the outcome will be that different.

[billl]

When we were in the Northview district back in 2006 to 2009, it was a highly highly competitive school. Students that would otherwise excel were just average or above average there. Some of this was fostered by the school itself -- pushing students to take SAT and ACT multiple times and focusing on the school's overall scores. But some of it was also cultural and reinforced by the parents ("I didn't get a perfect 107 in this honors class... my dad is going to kill me"). As for college, I know my daughter got her first pick of universities, but she went out of state to a University that most of the students would not even consider. So I can't speak much to the advantage there.

I know that Mr. Z encouraged the formation of student clubs around any sort of interest. There was even a Manga club when my daughter was there. How much of that legacy remains I don't know. But overall the place seemed excessively rigid and strict, which tended to stifle the more creative students.

[billl]

Also, in case you didn't already know, the Northview campus is much newer than the Chattahoochee campus. Northview was established in 2002, Chattahoochee in 1991.

[Tarzanman]

I would choose the better school. Even though school is a very large part of a teenager's life "well roundedness" is more a function of what happens outside the classroom.

No offense to any parents or kids here, but these *are* public schools in Georgia that we are talking about... and 'academically grueling' is very much a relative term. The students I have met from both Chattahoochee and Northview would have been very much average (or slightly less than) at the high school I attended in Virginia.

Personally, I would choose the more competitive academic atmosphere (again, keeping in mind that these are public schools in Georgia). There is some truth to the notion of a rising tide lifting all boats.... not that Chattahoochee is a bad school.... Northview is bigger and probably has a wider range of resources and/or amenities to offer.

Also, it is very close to the Super H Mart, so your kid can get Pocky and Ramune sodas conveniently :-)

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Tarzanman

I would choose the better school. Even though school is a very large part of a teenager's life "well roundedness" is more a function of what happens outside the classroom.

No offense to any parents or kids here, but these *are* public schools in Georgia that we are talking about... and 'academically grueling' is very much a relative term. The students I have met from both Chattahoochee and Northview would have been very much average (or slightly less than) at the high school I attended in Virginia.

Personally, I would choose the more competitive academic atmosphere (again, keeping in mind that these are public schools in Georgia). There is some truth to the notion of a rising tide lifting all boats.... not that Chattahoochee is a bad school.... Northview is bigger and probably has a wider range of resources and/or amenities to offer.

Also, it is very close to the Super H Mart, so your kid can get Pocky and Ramune sodas conveniently :-)

Just because Chattahoochee High School has a reputation of being much-more socially well-rounded does not mean that it has any less-beneficial of an academic atmosphere.

Chattahoochee just has a reputation of fostering a well-rounded, almost family-type of atmosphere that focuses more on social inclusion while Northview has a reputation of focusing much more singularly on academics.

Both schools are excellent schools (no less than exceptional by Southeastern standards), and just because both schools have distinctly different cultures does not mean that one school is either better or worse than the other, they're just two great schools that are both distinctly different in their educational approaches.

If a family is geared more strictly towards academics, then Northview is likely the best school for them.

If having a more complete social experience is important in addition to excellent academics is important for a family, then Chattahoochee might be a better choice.

It all just depends on what a family wants an educational experience to be for their children when choosing between two of the best schools in the Southeastern U.S.

[desifamily23]

Originally Posted by Tarzanman

The students I have met from both Chattahoochee and Northview would have been very much average (or slightly less than) at the high school I attended in Virginia.

Hi,
Would you please name the high school in Virginia that you attended ? Is it possible that its ranked higher than the 2 public schools you are discussing in Georgia ?

Once a while I see this being mentioned here and there on the forums... (not these specific schools but) that education down south is nothing compared with the north.

While I can accept that as a very broad consensus, I am having a hard time believing that kids from schools in the Southeast are not comparable with similarly ranked schools from the North.

I mean if these kids from Chattahoochee and Northview are scoring above 2000 in the SATs, how dumb (sorry... how average) can they be ?

[fzx]

Originally Posted by desifamily23

Hi,
Would you please name the high school in Virginia that you attended ? Is it possible that its ranked higher than the 2 public schools you are discussing in Georgia ?

Once a while I see this being mentioned here and there on the forums... (not these specific schools but) that education down south is nothing compared with the north.

While I can accept that as a very broad consensus, I am having a hard time believing that kids from schools in the Southeast are not comparable with similarly ranked schools from the North.

I mean if these kids from Chattahoochee and Northview are scoring above 2000 in the SATs, how dumb (sorry... how average) can they be ?

I agree with your point. What are the criteria to say a student is average?

[deacongirl]

Originally Posted by desifamily23

Hi,
Would you please name the high school in Virginia that you attended ? Is it possible that its ranked higher than the 2 public schools you are discussing in Georgia ?

Once a while I see this being mentioned here and there on the forums... (not these specific schools but) that education down south is nothing compared with the north.

While I can accept that as a very broad consensus, I am having a hard time believing that kids from schools in the Southeast are not comparable with similarly ranked schools from the North.

I mean if these kids from Chattahoochee and Northview are scoring above 2000 in the SATs, how dumb (sorry... how average) can they be ?

Yes. I agree. I am 100% confident that the education my kid will receive at Walton will prepare her just as well, if not better, to succeed at college and at life than the education I got at an excellent, very highly natinally ranked, public school in the NE.