What is Walton High School really like? (Atlanta, Roswell: appointed, fit in)

[Tori1973]

I am moving down to the Atlanta area soon and need to decide where to live. Since my husband will be working near the Cumberland Mall area, I will be moving to East Cobb. I pretty much have it narrowed down to one of three school districts. It is between Walton, Pope and Lassiter.

Walton is rated the best out of the three schools (and would probably give my husband the best commute to work) and it seems like I should pick the best school possible but I have some concerns. It seems like the atmosphere regarding grades is very intense and it is not a friendly school for average students. If you are not in the top tier of students, you might not have a very good experience there. The parents have a reputation of being very pushy and there is tons of pressure to produce good grades. I also hear that it is one of the wealthier areas and filled with rich, snobby kids. If you are just middle class or upper middle class, you probably won't fit in.

So I guess I am really looking for some feedback from you guys about Walton High school and what it is really like to go there. I am feeling a little hesitant to send my daughter there because of some of the things I have heard and read. My daughter is only 6 so I don't know if she will be super smart or just average and I'm afraid if we move to Walton area and she is average she will have a hard time living there. Thanks.

[kaday]

Originally Posted by Tori1973

I am moving down to the Atlanta area soon and need to decide where to live. Since my husband will be working near the Cumberland Mall area, I will be moving to East Cobb. I pretty much have it narrowed down to one of three school districts. It is between Walton, Pope and Lassiter.

Walton is rated the best out of the three schools (and would probably give my husband the best commute to work) and it seems like I should pick the best school possible but I have some concerns. It seems like the atmosphere regarding grades is very intense and it is not a friendly school for average students. If you are not in the top tier of students, you might not have a very good experience there. The parents have a reputation of being very pushy and there is tons of pressure to produce good grades. I also hear that it is one of the wealthier areas and filled with rich, snobby kids. If you are just middle class or upper middle class, you probably won't fit in.

So I guess I am really looking for some feedback from you guys about Walton High school and what it is really like to go there. I am feeling a little hesitant to send my daughter there because of some of the things I have heard and read. My daughter is only 6 so I don't know if she will be super smart or just average and I'm afraid if we move to Walton area and she is average she will have a hard time living there. Thanks.

Sorry I can't directly answer your question but I can provide some insight. I think you'll find the majority of kids at Walton to be upper middle class. We ended up buying in the Pope district (my kids are young as well). A lot of it had to do with attitudes. While we were searching for homes and schools we encountered people who had a lot to say about Walton...some attendees, some graduates some with kids there. The attitude of superiority was rather comical. They really looked down their noses on Pope and Lassiter. One late twenties-something a store clerk who had attended Walton really had a lot of attitude and negativity towards Pope and Lassiter. It was all I could do to not point out that being a store clerk was not really bragging rights. Not that all people are that way by any means. But, it was hard for me to shake those impressions.

For the record Walton has higher SAT scores. Not that much higher. We have been happy in a Pope feeder elementary (we have some Walton feeder kids as well). I have not come across any attitude in the years we have been here...just a lot of parents, students and teachers striving hard. Mostly middle class, some upper and some lower. It's a good crew and the kind I want my kids to identify with.

[msh0146]

"I also hear that it is one of the wealthier areas and filled with rich, snobby kids. If you are just middle class or upper middle class, you probably won't fit in."

Well then, sounds like you've already made up your mind...

Don't obsess about it. Your daughter is only six. There is no guarantee that the atmosphere at any high school will be the same when she starts high school as it is now.

[RainyRainyDay]

My child is a sophomore at Lassiter and I'd generally support kaday's comments. There does seem to be a bit of attitude among some Walton people (not all, of course), which seems rather silly, since the differences in test scores between the schools are just not that great. My child is classified as academically gifted, and she is happy and very adequately challenged at Lassiter in the circle of gifted students, which tends to be a bit like a big family, as they pretty much have all their classes together. However, I've heard parent comments that average kids can feel overlooked at Lassiter, let alone Walton, and I have no personal experience to provide insight about that.

[Tori1973]

Originally Posted by msh0146

"I also hear that it is one of the wealthier areas and filled with rich, snobby kids. If you are just middle class or upper middle class, you probably won't fit in."

Well then, sounds like you've already made up your mind...

Don't obsess about it. Your daughter is only six. There is no guarantee that the atmosphere at any high school will be the same when she starts high school as it is now.

We haven't made up our mind at all, which is why I am asking the question. I was just stating some things I heard. I certainly don't think it is fair to make a decision or rule out an entire school district because of some things I've read or heard.

In our one brief visit to East Cobb, I really liked the area surrounding the Walton school district. I am actually hoping that people were going to chime in and say that it is not nearly as bad as its reputation and that they know many average students that had wonderful experiences there.

[kaday]

Originally Posted by Tori1973

We haven't made up our mind at all, which is why I am asking the question. I was just stating some things I heard. I certainly don't think it is fair to make a decision or rule out an entire school district because of some things I've read or heard.

In our one brief visit to East Cobb, I really liked the area surrounding the Walton school district. I am actually hoping that people were going to chime in and say that it is not nearly as bad as its reputation and that they know many average students that had wonderful experiences there.

You know the area surrounding Walton is very nice. I can see why that would appeal to you. There are a lot of parent comments on greatschools.net about Walton. You may be able to get some insight from that. I am sorry I couldn't be more helpful. Best of luck.

[roxyrn]

We have recently moved from New York.

This is week three for our 16-year-old at Roswell High School and so far so good. The kids have been very nice and counselor and other staff have been very friendly and helpful.

Having been a very challenging school in Connecticut (New Canaan HS), wanted a less stressful atmosphere for this child. He is the youngest of five so we had a pretty good idea going into this which type of high school would be best for him.

Remember, the top ranked schools may not be the top pick for your student/family.

[lastminutemom]

Originally Posted by kaday

You know the area surrounding Walton is very nice. I can see why that would appeal to you. There are a lot of parent comments on greatschools.net about Walton. You may be able to get some insight from that. I am sorry I couldn't be more helpful. Best of luck.

Given that your child is only 6, I would primarily focus on the elementary schools, but focus on good high school districts.

Walton is a great school for tippy top students, I think many parents of average students have been disappointed. But truthfully, many parents of average students aren't always thrilled at Walton's feeder schools as well.

We have 3.5 weeks of school left here in most places. Try to go and visit the schools that you are interested in (elementary) and get a feel for the culture of the school.

That is the best advice anyone can give you is to get into the schools and see for yourself.

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by Tori1973

I am moving down to the Atlanta area soon and need to decide where to live. Since my husband will be working near the Cumberland Mall area, I will be moving to East Cobb. I pretty much have it narrowed down to one of three school districts. It is between Walton, Pope and Lassiter.

Walton is rated the best out of the three schools (and would probably give my husband the best commute to work) and it seems like I should pick the best school possible but I have some concerns. It seems like the atmosphere regarding grades is very intense and it is not a friendly school for average students. If you are not in the top tier of students, you might not have a very good experience there. The parents have a reputation of being very pushy and there is tons of pressure to produce good grades. I also hear that it is one of the wealthier areas and filled with rich, snobby kids. If you are just middle class or upper middle class, you probably won't fit in.

So I guess I am really looking for some feedback from you guys about Walton High school and what it is really like to go there. I am feeling a little hesitant to send my daughter there because of some of the things I have heard and read. My daughter is only 6 so I don't know if she will be super smart or just average and I'm afraid if we move to Walton area and she is average she will have a hard time living there. Thanks.

I would much rather have my child attend Pope or Lassiter over Walton.

This is from an educator and a graduate of one of the three East Cobb high schools that you are looking at.


(And for the record--considering everything, I personally think the best environment in the East Cobb high schools is found at Sprayberry and Kell (followed by Wheeler).

Sprayberry, in particular, is smaller with top academics, and a close-knit community. Many beautiful neighborhoods as well. )

[im2bob]

Both of my daugthers went to Walton. Our oldest got a 1540 on the SAT on her first try and got a scholarship to GWU. She had a 4.4 GBA and yet was 60th in her class. It is very, very competitive from an academic standpoint. I do not want to make this sound like a racial comment, but there are a lot of asian families who seek out Walton and they are very serious about their academics. Our youngest got a scholarship to Auburn. Both had good experiences at Walton. For the average or below average student, I think Walton can be a little overwhelming and challenging. The school has something for everyone. They are very competitive in athletics. Only very good athletes will play on the major varsity sports, especially football, basketball, volleyball and tennis. My kids were very active in the great drama program and my wife was the president of the drama program for 3 years. Great kids there.

If you send me an email to ulcardinal "at" hotmail "dot" com, I will put you in touch with my wife and she will be happy to tell you everything she knows. She was at the school more days than not from 2003-2007.