re: Best public school in Louisiana

100% your best bet in the NOLA area is the jefferson parish magnet system. Haynes, Patrick Taylor, and TJ certainly provide a greater education than most of the private schools in the area. Including higher ACT scores if thats your concern. Other than that St. Charles is a decent option and the regular Jefferson schools arent as horrendous as people would lead you to believe.

Good luck.

Acadiana High

I can comment only on BR area. Quality of education at CHS, SJA, Episcopal and Uhigh is pretty much all the same. Similar quality of education at BR Magnet. HOWEVER, of the families I knew from private elementary school who chose to take their kids out of private for high school and put them in BRMHS, each and every one of those kids turned extremely liberal, with various body and facial piercings, goth, hippie, gender issues, etc... you name a SJW or liberal belief or stereotypical appearance and each one now possesses one or more. That won't happen at the private high schools.

You decide if this is important to you.

You will get above average public education in Zachary or Ascension or Central for free without the liberal influence your kids will receive at BRMHS.

There are numerous schools in he Greater New Orleans area over 20k

In St. Tammany you have quite a few choices.

West:

Fontainebleau- currently the highest rated. It's ACT scores have the best the last two years IIRC. It has the kids from Abita and portions of Mandeville. Solid sports teams...esp. girls. The black kids are mainly from Abita and the white kids are suburban types. In short, they do have some hood rats to be aware of, but the population is only about 5% of the student body. When Lakeshore opened it really hurt athletically as they went from strong statewide to average to good locally.

Mandeville- the most exclusive in the area. There are very few minorities except for a small group of black kids from Mandeville. It is probably no more than 2% of the population. The sports teams are pretty good except Football, which was quite strong, but now seems in disarray. Every other sport is pretty solid though...especially the girls side. It's almost like a "private" public school and as such sports like golf and tennis are quite strong.

Lakeshore- The "new" school in the area. It has a small minority population from the Lacombe area. It's the most "middle class" of the three. It has good athletic programs but is in a smaller classification (for now). It is set to move up in classification soon. Even then it will probably be competitive but it will take time to adjust in all sports. The girls side, like the other Mandeville schools, is really good.

Covington- it has the largest minority population in West St. Tammany (15% of the student population) and the most rural (equestrian team). It's diversity can be a positive (the student of the year was from CHS two years ago), or a negative (hood rats and hillbillies). Basically, it's a microcosm of the real world. Athletically they can be good or bad. Country Club sports aren't the thing. Football looks quite strong. Academically the honors program is strong, but the SPED population is large so test scores will never match the other three.

East:
Northshore- basically the Mandeville of Eastern St. Tammany (minus the yacht club crew). The academics are strong but unlike Mandeville, athletics are average on most years. They are quite strong in soccer on the boys side and baseball has been good too. The girls programs are the best on this end of the parish. It is also the most "middle class" on this end. Minorities make up 3-5% of the student population. Most of them are middle class though.

Slidell- The school with the most clout on this end of the parish historically. A ton of multi-generational students . Academically it's solid. It has a minority population of about 10% of the school plus some Chalmation transplants (think saying "Hey bra" in front of every sentence). In short they have hood rats and wanna be hood rats. Don't let that fool you, the majority of the student body is middle class. Athletically they are solid in most sports and may be the best football program on the east side in 5A.

Salmen- The "inner city" school of St. Tammany. Yes, there is a large minority population (30%), but it isn't an Orleans parish public school. Academically they are okay, but their honors program is solid. Athletically the country club sports are weak, but, like Covington, they have a great football history. In short, if the sport requires athletes, they have them. Being in a lower classification magnifies that situation.

Pearl River - The most rural of the schools as a whole. Like Covington though, the demographics are changing. More and more subdivisions are being built meaning more and more middle class students. Academically it is average so, once again, its honors only. Athletically it is also average, but, being in a lower classification, one great athlete can make a season.


In short, you can't go wrong imho, it just depends on what you are looking for. All of them have negatives but all of them have positives too. Basically, public school is St. Tammany is going to be what you and your children make of it. The huge numbers of successful students at the university level attest to this.

Private schools in St. Tammany are excellent. In short, think of Mandeville but more exclusive and better athletically for the most part. The hood rats that are their are specifically for athletics. I have heard kids at St. Paul have refer to their school as "the plantation". Basically, the black kids aren't there for diversity. In short, you are paying for exclusivity, and it can be had. If you are Catholic, all of those schools (St. Paul, SSA, Hannah, and Pope John Paul II all offer you an excellent opportunity to pursue your faith. In my experience, that makes up the bulk of the students at these schools. Yes there are some "money" people, but it isn't as prevalent as one may think. If you are Christian, Northlake is more non-denominational and middle class. The names let you know about 1st Baptist of Slidell and Christ Episcopal of Covington...both quite small. Christ Episcopal has some "money" people and I believe is the most expensive school in the parish.

Basically, with the private schools you can't go wrong either. Like the public schools, all of them have positives and negatives. But also like the public schools, there are more positives than negatives. If you are a good family with a good kid, the families that you will meet through their association will probably be similar to you and your family. Be active in your kids life and the rest will take care of itself.

Sorry for the book but you asked for it.

Good luck!

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There are numerous schools in he Greater New Orleans area over 20k

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I'm well aware.

However, not everyone at those schools are paying full tuition fwiw

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I;m sorry can you link that? Just have not heard that published. Only thing I was aware of was TOPS eligible.

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Niche.com gives all that info

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Grade/. Middle there is a wider gap than HS as far as very good School's and I think for some that carries on to high school

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I'd put Metairie Academy, Gretna, and Ruppel against any Catholic elementary.

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Baw, baaawwwwww .. You know there is no school data there.

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Based on what?

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did not send our child to Catholic School

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Point still stands.

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Point does not stand, a lot of private schools have more flexibility in the curriculum including keeping with a common core style ctritcal thinking education.

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Having been a product of the magnet system I can tell you this is definitely present in most aspects of the education requirements there.