Allen School District

Hi T.,
I realize you posted this long ago and have probably made decisions by now. None the less, I'd like to toss another option out to you. I am a licensed teacher with 13 years teaching experience. I will be opening a private school out of my home this fall. To begin with, I will take in kids kinder through second grades. I'd love to find a core group to work with at least until high school. I have an ad under Local Business Reviews Academics k-8 with a couple reviews and one under home schooling with another review, if you're intrested. The School for Enlightened Learning is very child centered. I offer quality education at prices less than traditional private schools. Best of luck in whatever you decide!

Dear Tracy,
My family moved to Allen last June for the schools. My daughter is a sixth grader at Green and we've very pleased. We decided against Boon and Kerr because of overcrowding, but that should be better now because a new school opens fall of 2008 to relieve the overcrowding.
Because of my daughter's age we were looking very closely at middle schools, also. We really like Ereckson, which is on the west side of town. That would be my best advice to you is look mostly on the west side of town.
I highly recommend Allen schools. My daughter is thriving here. She earns straight A's or A/B mixes.

L., mother of a 12-year-old girl.

Buy my house! We live in Beacon Hill in Allen--great neighborhood with a pool and community parks. at Alma and McDermott on the west side of Allen. Our elementary school is Green and it is right in the neighborhood. It is exemplary and the parents seems to like it. The high school in Allen is gigantic--one for the city, so if that doesn't bother you, great. Lots of nice bike trails and parks near by.

Our house isn't on the market yet, but feel free to contact me if you want to hear more. ____@____.com.

T.,

AISD is a very good school district. Most schools are rated Exemplary and or Excellent. Another ISD that is right there that is Top Notch is Lovejoy ISD (most of Fairview feeds into these schools). Either way, you'll be happy.

Good Luck,
T.

Hi T.,

Our 4 children have always been in the Allen ISD. Our oldest is graduating this June from AHS. We have loved it here. Our youngest attends Reed Elementary (located East of 75). It is a fairly small and older school. The only thing we may have done differently would have been to evaluate the massive growth predicted for this area before we moved to it. But on the flipside, I have 2 at the only high school (about 1200 graduating students each year) and they say they would not go anywhere else! They too love it! The area still feels like a small town and we aren't going anywhere until our youngest graduates in 2015!!! Good luck in your decision.

Allen is a great school district as well as McKinney ISD and Lovejoy ISD. I personally live in Fairview and my kids go to McKinney schools. We love McKinney schools but I know that Allen is a fantastic district also. Both cities are really proactive in keeping up with the growth by building new elementary schools as needed. I'm a local Realtor and know the area really well so if you do decide to move, I would love to help you find the right home.

Hello,

My brother and his family live in Allen. They have not been too pleased with the schools there. Allen ISD use the "Packet Method", which are greeted with mixed reviews. My dad was in education and does not agree with this method at all. This method of education involves sending the child home with a packet for the week. Really advanced and smart children will finish the packet in one night. Others will take longer. My neice (in 2nd grade) is one of the kids who finishes it in one night. She is bored and not challenged enough. So they are looking into homeschooling her. If I was you, I would investigate the curriculum, the method of teaching. I hope this gives you some insight. Otherwise, Allen ISD has been rated pretty highly. As you know Allen is expanding pretty rapidly so the taxes are pretty high due to building more schools, etc. That is another aspect you need to look into. I know this may not be what you wanted to hear but I always prefer to hear both sides and base my decisions on that.

H.

T.,

I had the same question about another school district. One of the moms on here directed me to a website called greatschools.net. You can compare all the schools in an area, find out class size, test scores, etc. . . It's been very helpful.

T.,
My husband and I moved to Allen in 1999 before kiddos and have seen Allen growing very well. The AISD public schools and churches are excellent! My daughter is at KERR elementary and LOVES it. Next year the school will become smaller (kiddo-wise) as a new school (Evans) close by will be opening. So I am really looking forward to seeing the classes become smaller with less students in the building as well. I highly recommend that you research the neighborhoods carefully as well as contact the AISD www.allenisd.org as some schools are going to be VERY crowded and FULL for the next few years until they build another elementary on the west side of Allen. I think the east side had some changes to but i am not to aware of all those details.
Also the MIDDLE schools are being redistricted too--so pick a neighborhood that is FOR sure going to be going to the MIDDLE school you want...closer to your home. They had some conflicts this past year but I think things are starting to be ironed out. good luck and keep researching...

You asked for the good, bad and the ugly. There are a lot of good, but no one seems to mention the bad. I have 2 kiddos in the district - one loves it and does awesome, the other couldn't take the large amount of students and the high pressure teachers. Allen ISD is extremely good at filtering out the bad and ugly whenever it is brought up. They even stopped the local paper from printing letters to the editors if they complain about the schools. John Stossel came to the High School to run a story about the security at Allen High School and when the powers that be didn't like the tone of the story (they found a hole in the security), it was cancelled. My son has had many BAD teachers. The ones who don't care to teach and don't care to help the students. A good thing is that they don't last longer than the year that he had them, but it doesn't help the students who had that teacher. I think the main problem is that there are just too many students. I would strongly recommend Ereckson Middle School - they respect the kids and they get respect back. Ford has a mindset that all kids are bad and yelling is a common occurance for their teachers. A dirty little secret of AHS is that when a student fails, they can take a Credit By Exam through Texas Tech to get the credit they need. This occurs more than you would think. There are many good teachers, great opportunities for electives, a great fine arts program, lots of clubs and a continuingly growing district. The main problem is that there are over 4000 kids in one building and it leaves very little possibilities for one on one attention to your child and unless your child is the genious who gives up their childhood, being in the top 10% is probably not an option. This may be what all other districts are like as well, I just have experience with this one.

We moved to Allen in 1999 when my daughter was entering her sophomore year and my son was beginning middle school. I have nothing but good to say about the schools in Allen. Both of my kids were able to attend lots of advanced classes and were more than prepared to excel in their college years. Although I don't have any personal experience with the elementary school system, I have no doubt that it is excellent. Allen is a wonderful place to live!

B.

Good morning, T.~
May you be welcomed to Allen...my husband, 2 daughters, & I settled in Allen 19-yr. ago, having seen both girls through AISD (first one graduated '07, and second one is a 9-th gr.). We had a fantastic experience at Vaughan Elem., and I'm inclined to feel that Boon Elem. is also excelling at being an EXEMPLARY educational community. Considering the statistics for the 14- and 15-yr. old set (typically drawn to "experimentation"), I find the concept of AISD having set up the 9-th grade in a separate facility extremely helpful in getting our kids ready for higher grades at AHS. At the Lowery Freshman Center, all of the middle schools COME TOGETHER, with expectations of COMMUNITY, and both my daughters are enjoying solid friendships beyond their "elementary buddies." Especially because AHS is such a large school, these 9-th graders share a bond that helps them hold their own among other experienced high schoolers (11-th & 12-th graders). Also, the 10-th grade at AHS is primarily "located" to their "own" section, and that even helps from being unnecessarily distracted and/or "pressured" by slightly older, more experienced peers in 11-th & 12-th. Our family has also found it beneficial that AHS is comprised not only of Allen, but also the surrounding communities of Fairview, Anna, & Melissa (and til recently, Lucas, but now they've opened their own new high school). (Please refer to the Allen ISD website.) To us, AISD has created a healthy sense of community spirit among Allen and its neighboring communities. Allen has many wonderful places to eat, shop, & worship, and the neighboring communities are also part of that. Last of all, ALLEN AND MY NEIGHBORHOOD CAN ALWAYS HANDLE GGRRREAT NEW NEIGHBORS, esp. with many homes for sale. Best wishes, T. & family from Shellie F.

This is our first year in Allen ISD. We moved here from Plano last Summer and our 2nd grade son is having the best year! Boon, Kerr and Green Elementary are all clustered there together (within a mile of each other) and all three are exceptional schools. Our only complaint is overcrowding, but a new elemenraty in the area is opening next school year and it will relieve the other schools tremendously.

If you have more specific questions, e-mail me at ____@____.com I am happy to share what I know!

My husband and I just signed a contract to build a new house in Allen. I love the Allen school district! Due to the industry I am in I know a lot about the area schools. Sometimes too much! Anyway, Allen is a small district that will not outgrow the school system.... if you want specific information about a certain school feel free to call me ###-###-#### and I would be happy to talk to you about that particular school and can give better advice based on your childs’ individual need. Jan

My daughter is in 3rd grade at Vaughan Elementary and we absolutely love it. She is doing outstanding in school. I specifically moved to Allen before she started Kindergarten to be in the Allen ISD. I can't say enough wonderful things about it.

Hello,

I have the priveledge of knowing Mr. and Mrs. ET BOON personally. My husband graduated with their son from Allen High School in the 80's and they also had two daughters graduate here. Mr. Boon was a Dentist in Allen for many years and has always been very involved with the AISD in some compacity. They are the sweetest couple.

I was at the dedication of that school and it is a wonderful school. The Boon's have been so involved and the staff are all wonderful. You will love it there.

My children actually go to Lovejoy ISD in Lucas. We love the school district because of the smaller High School. Allen ISD is superb and I believe you will love it no matter where you end up.

My nieces went to Kerr for 4 years and just moved last year to Kansas. My sister inlaw loved it their as well.
It is just a great school district all around.

Goodluck

I think the school district is good. I have a 3rd grader at Kerr and he loves it.

Hi T.,

My DH & I live in Allen. Boone Elementry is where our kids will go when they are old enough. I can't say enough good things about Allen. We have lived here for almost 2 years and we've loved it. We live in the Quail Run subdivision off Watters and Exchange Parkway. Presby Allen Hospital is across the street and I love living so close to a hospital. Hopefully we'll never need to be a patient there but being close gives me peace of mind.

I've heard great things from friends about Boone and the education in general here in Allen. One of the doctors my husband works with, moved to Allen last summer just because of the school systems. His 3 kids were in the plano system and they just weren't happy. From what I've heard they are thriving in the Allen school district.

Allen is a very family orientated town but still has some the small town values. The parks and recreation is wonderful. I have taken several class's through it and the natatoriam is wonderful. I love that it is reasonably priced so families can afford to use it. There aren't any contracts like a typical gym so that is nice. I was amazed on how many people actually use it every day.

Allen has an East side and a West side to it. In my personal opinion, the West side is nicer then the East side. The side is older and seems to be less expensive. Where as in the West side everythign is much newer and much nicer. I am so happy we chose to live on the West side. I also feel with living in Allen we are very close to everything. Stone briar is just 15 mintues down 121, McKinney is just up the road a bit, we have 75 right here with easy access. And the town is growing. I can only imagine how nice it's going to be in the next 5 years with the 2 new malls opening up.

Please feel free to email me back with any questions.

Good luck with your search!

T.