PLG Schools and Amenities
We are *this* close to making an offer in PLG and are doing one last round of due diligence. Two main areas of concern schools (I have a 2 year old) and amenities (dry cleaner, food shops etc.) Any PLGers past and present able to share experiences or advice? many thanks
We are *this* close to making an offer in PLG and are doing one last round of due diligence. Two main areas of concern schools (I have a 2 year old) and amenities (dry cleaner, food shops etc.) Any PLGers past and present able to share experiences or advice? many thanks
Sorry for the late reply! I totally crashed last night. Anyhoo, below is the shortlist I came up with in all my research broken down by neighborhood, in no particular order.
Park Slope
Ps282
Ps321
Ps372 – think this is special needs only
Ps39
South Slope
Ps10
Ps124
Ps172
Windsor Terrace
Ps107
Ps154
Prospect Park South
Ps130
Kensington
Ps230
Ditmas Park
Ps139
Ps217
Ps245-considered an “up and coming”
Ps249- consiered an “up and coming”
Greenpoint
Ps31
Ps34
Ps110
Brooklyn Heights
Ps8
Ps29
Carrol Gardens
Ps58
Ft Greene
Ps11
Ps20 = some controversy but overall ok
Prospect Heights
Ps9
Bed Stuy
Ps21
Ps261
Ps10
I’m sure I left some out… this is just what I came up with. You’ll also notice I skipped some neighborhoods b/c this list was drawn from areas we were looking for our new apt, and some areas were off the list for us for various reasons. There are lots of others!
Don’t forget that going to see the school / talking to a school coordinator can be way more valuable than a million opinions posted on the web. Good luck! 🙂
BCtoBK,
RE: your 11:20 PM comment; if you hang out at K-Dog for a couple of mornings you’re likely to meet a fair percentage of us.
“I mean, PS 321 wasn’t the envy of anything 10 years ago was it? ”
Actually, it was. I moved from BH to PS in 1990 to send my kid there.
A big fat thank you to everyone that posted today. I got a ton of information and perspective and I’m only sorry I can’t meet this group for coffee. I think the conversation would be awesome.
A big fat thank you to everyone that posted today. I got a ton of information and perspective and I’m only sorry I can’t meet this group for coffee. I think the conversation would be awesome.
DD, great post and very helpful. Thank you.
Amen to this:
“you would be surprised at what a few like-minded & motivated parents can achieve. If just 10 neighborhood parents a year that send their kids to Maple Street School would put half of the energy & resources that Maple Street demands, our schools would be something to envy indeed.”
I mean, PS 321 wasn’t the envy of anything 10 years ago was it?
DD,
Glad to hear about your experience with PS 161. It wasn’t on our radar back when we were looking for schools and,with a 26 year old I’m far from up to date on neighborhood schools, other than following news about the proposed charter school. Still, I didn’t expect to learn something about my neighborhood from a forum thread–thank you.
Well, gussy may be right about there being slimmer opportunities to game the system today than many years ago when this was my family’s challenge. But, I just don’t buy into the notion that the situation is totally hopeless. There are just way too many young families with children who have moved into PLG in the past 5 years; surely not all of these children are enrolled in private schools from the age of 3 forward! As one who tries to see the glass half full, I contend that there are solutions out there to be found — if you want to find them bad enough! To deepen your research efforts on this question, you might want to touch base with Maple Street School, Almond Tree Group Family Daycare (another popular preschool program here) and those who are working towards the goal of opening the Lefferts Gardens Charter School in 2010. http://www.hawthornestreet.com/2009/03/plg-charter-school-in-the-works.html
(And, DD, what a great post! I must have been working on my response below while you were submitting yours. IMO, yours is exactly the kind of family I was suggesting BCtoBK might want to connect with for getting more helpful contemporary advice/opinions on how to deal with the education challenge.) ___________________________________________________
BCtoBK,
I’m not sure what criteria Bob Marvin is using to qualify a “middle class” family. I have a well paying union job and my husband is an attorney with a fairly large international law firm, so I would like to think we make the cut. We live in PLG and send our children to school in the neighborhood. So do at least 3 other middle-class families that live on our street. These are just the ones in our daughter’s kindergarten class. Our 6yo went to Maple Street School and will start her 2nd year at her zoned school, PS 161. Our 2yo will be attending Maple Street. PS 161 is one of the main reasons we didn’t purchase a house in “Lefferts Manor” since none of the homes there are zoned for 161.
Like PLG in general, PS 161 may not be for everyone, which is fine. We’re comfortable that as involved parents our children will receive a good education there. I also strongly feel that there is much to be gained from going to school with the people we live with as part of that education. I did some volunteering via Jr Achievement, so I was able to spend quite a bit of time in the school before I was a parent. Last year I helped out in the class a few time and with school trips. I’m looking forward this year to getting more involved with my daughter’s school. It’s not even close to being perfect, but you would be surprised at what a few like-minded & motivated parents can achieve. If just 10 neighborhood parents a year that send their kids to Maple Street School would put half of the energy & resources that Maple Street demands, our schools would be something to envy indeed.
I had high expectations when I moved to PLG 6yrs ago and so far they have been greatly exceeded. I was looking for the a neighborhood were my inter-racial family could feel comfortable. Some place we could live and not merely sleep. Somewhere my family can be involved and a part of the greater community. I loved the work I’ve done to help bring new things to PLG. I love being a part of the things & getting to know the people that drew me here in the first place. Living in PLG, I feel when I send my children off into the world, they will be surprised at how special the community they come from truly is.