Kennesaw/Acworth or Tucker? (Atlanta, Evans: apartments, to rent, elementary school)

[Mom of 2]

My husband has been accepted as a doctoral student at Georgia State University and we will be moving to Georgia (from Utah) in August, and will be staying for at least 4 years. At the moment, we are quite interested in the Kennesaw area, but have had some relatives recommend Tucker. Not being able to visit at this time, it's kind of hard to figure out which area would be a better fit for our family. These are the basic things we are looking for:

--Family friendly (we have two young children and I am a stay-at-home mom)
--Close to shopping (I like Wal-Mart) but still pretty quiet.
--Low in crime--I need to feel safe taking my children on walks alone.
--Good elementary school.
--"Boring nightlife" is OK--we are pretty quiet people.
--Close to reliable public (or charter) transportation for my husband (we only have one car)

The only downside I've seen to the Kennesaw area thus far is that getting to and from Georgia State is a bit of a pain, but a friend did tell us about a Cobb County charter bus that is pretty reliable and is work-friendly (i.e. has outlets for computers on the bus and isn't too crowded). The idea of a small mountain is a plus to me, since I'm used to having mountains around.

I really don't know much about Tucker.

Given this information, does anyone have any suggestions/advice/information on which of these areas may fit us best?

[Mom of 2]

Forgot some things. We are planning to rent and need a place with at least 2 bedrooms (3 would be great!) that wouldn't be too expensive ($900 is getting pretty expensive to us). I realize this may not be easy to find, though.

And we would be using public schooling.

[lastminutemom]

http://dot.cobbcountyga.gov/cct.htm#routes

Will tell you about public transportation in Cobb

If you live in Tucker, will you be able to take him and pick him up from the MARTA station.

I might also suggest the Northlake area.

[dncngrl1964]

Acworth would be ok too they have a park and ride on the corner of 92 and baker road plus alot of car pooling options here especially for that area by the college

[Mom of 2]

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

I might also suggest the Northlake area.

Where is the Northlake area? I assumed it was another city, but I can't find it on a city list/map.

[lastminutemom]

It isn't really a city... it is part of unincorporated DeKalb. Look for Briarcliff Elementary or Oak Grove Elementary (though Oak Grove actually has no apartments).

Hawthorne Elementary has lots of apartments, but the school is very diverse, but in my opinion, is a gem of a school -- very small, lots of inclusive special ed programs.

Evansdale Elementary is another area to search in.

Keep in mind, in my opinion, DeKalb County School system is not at all the strongest school system in Metro Atlanta (actually among the weakest). We have some excellent schools, but depending on what you are looking for, our excellent might pale in comparison.