Schools in the Bay Area vs. Seattle area
I'm tired of the weather in Seattle and am thinking about moving to the bay. The schools in the east side of Seattle area (Bellevue, Mercer island) are really good. Any idea how the public schools are in the Bay area? P.S. One data point that I got from a friend was that the atmosphere in the Bay area is extremely competitive and kids are in a rat race for everything (to get scholarships and admission to high end universities, etc.). I don't want my kids to experience stress at this early age, but at the same time I'm looking for high quality education.
I’m sorry to say this. Bay Area is dominated with Asians and you can’t avoid rat race here no matter where you land in Bay Area. Kids are taught here by parents to be competitive, be higher than others. There are some schools in SJC which has lesser competitive crowd, but quality is not that great.
There are good schools which are not dominated by asians (lis gatos, saratoga, pleasanton). Though we sent our son to a competitive asian-majority school (we are not asians). No regrets. He works at FAANG now. But I suppose it depends on the child.
May I ask which private (I suppose?) school is it?
Public school. He went to several. Cupertino, Mission etc.
Yep, focus on the demographic. Bay Area “diversity is our strength” types who want to avoid blacks and Latinos while not admitting they’re just as racist as they claim Republicans are smartly seek out the “% of students on subsidized lunch” statistic when comparing school districts. That’s also how real estate agents get around the restrictions as well. Have 100% seen that HIGHLIGHTED at an open house. Some mid-peninsula school districts have the blend of white/Asian/Indian you secretly desire but can’t come out and say. Think Burlingame, Belmont, parts of San Mateo and San Carlos.
San Mateo schools are mostly meh at best. Because SMFCUSD also has Foster City, almost every city of San Mateo school is below the district average. The demographics are poor as well. Not sure why you need subsidized lunch as a proxy, because the SARC each school publishes annually had detailed demographics by ethnicity and other socioeconomic indicators if you care.
You need it if you’re the type that wants to pretend they’re not REALLY choosing by race. Subsidized lunch % is a good proxy for poors / Latinos / blacks.
Public schools in the Bay Area are VERY local and run from exceptional to deplorable. More depends on the individual neighborhood/school zoning.
Overall Cupertino and Palo Alto school districts in general tend to be the most competitive. If you don’t want your kids to be stressed avoid those. Los Gatos, Saratoga, San Carlos and Belmont schools are less pressure cooked but in general are still well regarded with a good mix of races where it’s isn’t new China or new India if you will.
I’m sorry but your kids need to learn to deal with stress at those hyper competitive schools if you want high quality education for your kids.
No