Evanston---would you send your kids to ETHS?

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by IAmEverywhere

... A disgruntled, immature 15-year-old could claim to be a parent and bash their school for the fun of it.

However, when multiple commenters mention the same issue at a school, it's wise to pay attention.
...

The moderators HERE do a better job of screening out multiple acccounts from the same individual. It would take about an average lunch break to make it look like any school was overrun with debauchery / a little slice of heaven...

The whole name of the aggregation site is kind of a misguided embaressment. The simple-minded "10-0" ranking is a big part of the problem that CPS faces when trying to encourage thoughtful school reform in a world where more people know who Honey BooBoo is than John Dewey...

Seriously, even their "objective" data would lead to some scary places. Anybody unfamilar with Chicago that thinks this is a "great" place to raise kids would be sorely mistaken : Leland Elementary School - Chicago, Illinois - IL - School overview

[kindrakindra]

Originally Posted by chet everett

The moderators HERE do a better job of screening out multiple acccounts from the same individual. It would take about an average lunch break to make it look like any school was overrun with debauchery / a little slice of heaven...

The whole name of the aggregation site is kind of a misguided embaressment. The simple-minded "10-0" ranking is a big part of the problem that CPS faces when trying to encourage thoughtful school reform in a world where more people know who Honey BooBoo is than John Dewey...

Seriously, even their "objective" data would lead to some scary places. Anybody unfamilar with Chicago that thinks this is a "great" place to raise kids would be sorely mistaken : Leland Elementary School - Chicago, Illinois - IL - School overview

The test scores here are excellent:

Leland Elementary School Test Scores - Chicago, Illinois - IL

[C. Maurio]

Originally Posted by divakat

I am talking more from a safety standpoint. A friend works right next to the high school and told me how bad it is around there. I think Evanston may be the perfect town for my family to buy our house in (looking at NW portion) but it is somewhat pricey. I love that it has a lot of charm, trees, near the lake, Northwestern campus, historic homes, walkable downtown with shopping, near Chicago and metra as well as el. If I have to send my two kids in 10 years to a private high schools, though, that may knock it off our list.

It is not "bad" around there. It is one of the top schools in the state!

[C. Maurio]

Originally Posted by divakat

It's really the safety of the area where the school is located that is an issue. I don't want the spillover of the crime in the area to compromise the safety of the kids in the building. After all, they still have to pass through the neighborhood to get to the high school.

The neighborhood is fine. I would walk through it day or night. People need to quit acting like tards just because black people live there. Many of the blacks there are west indian blacks- you know the kind that get up and go to work in the morning?

[IAmEverywhere]

@Chet: The comments on GreatSchools are date stamped. It would be obvious if a whole bunch of positive or negative comments popped up over a lunch break, or even an entire week.

Sometimes the comments which are consistent with each other were posted over the course of months or even years.

Although I do agree that the 1-10 scale is overly simplistic.

[C. Maurio]

Originally Posted by pjrhubart

Great thread. I could have written it myself.

I noticed the wikipedia entry for Evanston lists the HS as the 6th largest employer, employing 566 people. THis seems excessive -- Any insights -- ??

Evanston, Illinois - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is a very big school.

[US-Traveller]

Originally Posted by C. Maurio

It is a very big school.

While Evanston Township High School is a very large school, these are only employers based in Evanston. Most Evanstonians commute to Chicago or surrounding communities for employment.

[nana053]

Originally Posted by C. Maurio

It is not "bad" around there. It is one of the top schools in the state!

The neighborhoods around the high school have more crime than other parts of Evanston. That does not mean the high school itself is bad or that kids who go to the school actually have to deal with that crime during the day when school is in session.

[nana053]

Originally Posted by divakat

I am talking more from a safety standpoint. A friend works right next to the high school and told me how bad it is around there. I think Evanston may be the perfect town for my family to buy our house in (looking at NW portion) but it is somewhat pricey. I love that it has a lot of charm, trees, near the lake, Northwestern campus, historic homes, walkable downtown with shopping, near Chicago and metra as well as el. If I have to send my two kids in 10 years to a private high schools, though, that may knock it off our list.

Seriously, you would NOT have to send your kids to private high schools. ETHS is a very high quality school. The crime in the neighborhood does not spill over into the school. In general if your child is not in a gang, it is unlikely that he will end up with problems despite the fact that there is gang activity in the area. Unfortunately though living in those neighborhoods is less safe because there is gang activity there. Most of the violence though takes place late at night, not during school hours.

I do think the police need to do more to curb this, but I do not worry about my kids attending the school because of it.

[terramama]

I'm not sure anybody is really suggesting that looking at the greatschools website should be the only data set a parent should look to when searching for a good school for their kids. But, particularly when moving to a new area, it's not a bad place to start.

For instance, for Leland Elementary (K-3) that was mentioned earlier in the thread, I was able to find the following information on greatschools:

*The percentage of kids who meet or exceed standards in reading and math based on ISAT scores: 91%

*How subgroups fare as compared to the general population: There aren't many subgroups in the school to compare

*Make up of student body: 99% black, <1 Hispanic, 95% low income

*The level of spending per student and how funds are allocated: $9666/student with state average as $9238 (60% instructional; 13% student and staff support; 10 administration; 17% other)

It appears that the above info is in line with what is reported on the IIRC. And, although when looking at a school seriously I do prefer to see the breakdown of students meeting standards versus those exceeding standards (as provided on the IIRC), I do think the above info provides a parent with enough information to decide if they'd want to seriously consider this school for further objective and subjective investigation....or not.