Understanding the Public School System (Redwood City)

I., if I understand where you live, you will probably be assigned to Selby Lane School. Unfortunately, you will not be able to transfer into the Las Lomitas school district, which is an excellent one, unless you purchase a house in that district, which is parts of Menlo Park and west Atherton. There are several good private schools in the area if you are willing to pay the tuition, plus numerous parochial schools. Your baby has a way to go before you have to make this decision, and it sounds like he has major health challenges to overcome. I would get to know my neighbors and find out more about the local schools - it seems too early to worry! You should concentrate on finding a good nursery school for when your son is 3 years old. Please feel free to contact me if you need more suggestions. I have lived in Menlo Park and Palo Alto and know a lot about all the local schools.
Sincerely,
S. A.

I know your problem. My sister had the same trouble. Fortunately, I work in the another school district and was able to bring my niece to work with me. There are some good schools in Redwood City, the ones up in the hill areas. Look into them. Get a transfer to the other schools. If they say anything just threaten to keep her at home and home school her. Districts don't like that, because they lose money.
Good luck.
Rae

you are not forced to go to any school. what you can do is register your son for kindergarten in atherton and meet with the principal of the school/schools that you are interested in and usually districts are okay with transfers IF there is space.

You can apply for an inter district transfer but they are not easy to get. If you have daycare in the other district it is easier to get - if a child goes to daycare daily after school there.

There are lots of good private schools - look into the religious schools, Catholic ones are usually good, as well as the chains such as Challenger and Primary Plus. Harker School is excellent but it's in San Jose. Pinewood (or is it Pine Hill) has an excellent reputation. There are consultants who will help you pick. Look in the phone book and in the free Parent Magazines. There are lots of places to get info and lots of schools but you have to search. Make school visits and ask questions. Fortunately you have time on your side.

Hello, I understand the questions and concerns you have, being that I went through similar situations with my boys and their schooling. If you live on the border, you can definetly attend in either district I believe. The best thing to do is call the different districts, inquiring about schools closest to you, and any kind of transfer abilities to those schools. Since you live on the border of two districts, it might be a little easier to attend in the district you want. There is a website called "Greatschools.com" you can check out to see what schools get good ratings in your area. Hope this helps a little. R.

Hi I. -

Assignment to schools is indeed based on where you live. Although you can try for what is called an interdistrict transfer, it will be a tough job to have your child attend school in the Las Lomitas district, which is one of the top districts in the Bay Area.

Understand that this is a matter of economics. By and large, housing costs are quite a bit less in Redwood City than in Menlo Park, and hugely less than in most of Atherton. The property taxes paid by homeowners in all towns help to fund the school districts. The higher the cost of houses, the higher the property taxes, the more money that goes to schools (in theory, any way). Therefore, different school districts have more or less funding available depending in part on the taxes that the city and county pull in.

This is why in California people make such a big deal about what town they live in -- because of the school districts. It is a huge selling point when houses go on the market.

If you are really unhappy with the school your child will go to, it may be cheaper over the long haul to simply move to a town with schools more to your liking. Private schools in the Bay Area can cost as much as $37,000 a year, which is $481,000 over a period of 13 years. That's the equivalent of an excellent down payment on a home in any nice location.

Good luck!

J.

the great thing about rwc schools - is that you can apply to any of them (if you're not in the home school of the school you want - the lower ranked your school is the better chance you have of getting into the one you want) - orion is excellent, adalante is spanish immersion and excellent as well. those are both "public charter "schools that ppl apply in to. northstar goes from 3 -8 and is public but kids test into it - is fantastic
call the district office for how to do that. -

Do you have a lottery system there? We have it here in Santa Clara, but it's very rare you win and get your school of choice. Unfortunatly, my home school is a title 1 school...I tried the lottery for 3 years with no avail. The inter-district transfer is another way to go, but they have rules attached to it, so be sure to ask questions. I finally gave up after a battle with the school district, and am quite happy (but poor) with my kids at a private school.

www.greatschools.net

Good Luck!
D.

We also live in RWC near the Atherton border. We've chosen a private school for our 9 and 7 year old, however, we frequently consider moving to the public school system for various reasons.

Here's what I been told - in order to enroll in a school that is out of your district you must apply for an "out of district" transfer from RWC as well as apply for acceptance into another school district. Both districts have to agree. Its best to talk in person with the administrative office at the particular school you're interested in. Don't be too discouraged. I've heard great things about Orion School.

It's a bit of a haul, but consider the San Carlos public school district. All of the elementary schools are charter schools, which means that you can apply for your child to attend regardless of where you live. While 4 of the schools are traditional in nature (and usually 2 of the 4 are fully booked with SC residents, but there's usually room in at least of one of the other schools.) The other elementary school in SC is the San Carlos Charter Learning Center (CLC). People apply to go to this school from all over the place because of their particular approach to education. It's a private school education at public school prices (a bit like Northstar).

But, ..., you've got LOTS of time to figure this out. Try to relax in the meantime. I remember fretting about this stuff when my daughter was very young and I was assuming that we'd live in Menlo Park forever. Since then, everything has changed and we've moved twice. You'll be amazed by what you learn just by hanging out with other moms in the area. If you don't know other moms, try to find a moms' group.