Lots to consider when looking at schools

Jerry Bowens, a senior at West Charlotte High School, discusses his work with art teacher Beverly Smith.

Good schools are one of the first things many newcomers look for.

You can find them in the Charlotte area. But be warned: You're plunging into a large, complicated network of neighborhood, magnet, private and charter options.

Just over 80 percent of Mecklenburg County students enroll in the countywide public school system, which has about 170 schools and more than 134,000 students. Most of those are neighborhood schools, which means school-hunting may be part of your home-buying plan.

Public schools in the northern and south/southeastern suburbs tend to have the highest scores and the most affluent families. Many close-in schools have high poverty levels and the challenges that come with that.

But don't assume that neighborhoods, demographics or even test scores tell the whole story. Strong and weak teachers can be found in almost every school, and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools leaders are pushing to get more of the best principals and teachers into urban schools.

CMS (nobody uses the full title around here) also offers about a dozen magnet programs featuring such specialties as arts, sciences, technology and foreign language. Some have admission requirements, such as grade-level reading and math scores, but these are not the fiercely competitive magnets that some other cities have. For the most part, any student with interest can get in.

About a dozen charter schools – public schools that are licensed by the state and don't report to local districts – serve students in Mecklenburg and surrounding counties. Some cater to certain types of students, such as gifted or at-risk kids, but all are tuition-free and can't deny admission. Both charters and magnets use lotteries when there are more applicants than available seats.

Data about test scores, teacher qualifications, graduation rates and school safety can be found for all forms of public education; you can learn more about how to find it in these pages and at www.charlotteobserver.com/education. Just remember that numbers never give the full picture of a school. They can help you ask smarter questions, though.

The Charlotte region also offers a large menu of religious and independent private schools; about 12 percent of kids in Mecklenburg go that route. And a small but growing number of families home-school their children, with associations available to provide social support and extra activities.

Local parents can be a great source of inside information about schools. Just know that folks around here have strong but divergent views of what works best.

If you're coming from a city where everyone with options has given up on public schools, you'll quickly discover how many people in Charlotte are passionate about keeping CMS strong. But others are just as adamant about seeking alternatives, whether it's paying for private school or living across county lines.

Ann Doss Helms covers education: 704-358-5033; ahelms@charlotteobserver.com; Twitter updates @anndosshelms

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