Hey you Knoxville-ites, or those really in the know of the K-ville area...

[MIAUTIGER]

....I need some input.  What are the better school systems around the Cedar Bluff area?  And how do school assignments occur there?  Is there a School of Choice system available, or does your child have to go to the school that is associated with where you live?  I am talking about the area around Cedar Bluff, Farragut, Concord.....maybe even up to Ball Camp? I am not familiar with these areas at all, but see them on MapQuest around Cedar Bluff.

Thanks for any help you can provide here.

[murfvol]

It should be noted I'm a product of Blount County schools (not Maryville City), but have friends who graduated from every school in the Knox County. Here's my assessment: you can't go wrong.

Hardin Valley Academy is the flavor of the week, but you can send your  kids to South-Doyle (sister and several friends went there) and they'll get a good education. The best value in west(ish) Knoxville is Karns, but Powell is the best bang for your buck at the moment.

Realtors will typically degrade everything not in a three-mile radius of Pellissippi Parkway, but there are great places to live and terrific educational opportunities throughout the area.

[RockinGrannyVol]

....I need some input.  What are the better school systems around the Cedar Bluff area?  And how do school assignments occur there?  Is there a School of Choice system available, or does your child have to go to the school that is associated with where you live?  I am talking about the area around Cedar Bluff, Farragut, Concord.....maybe even up to Ball Camp? I am not familiar with these areas at all, but see them on MapQuest around Cedar Bluff.

Thanks for any help you can provide here.

And if you need a really good realtor -- IM me and I'll send you to my big brother!  He'll treat you right, even if you are an Aubie! HA!   Also, he lives down in that area, and 2 children attend school in the area, so he might could help you out there as well.

[Clockwork Orange]

I live in that area-- sort of Rocky Hill/Concord. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the high schools out there (Farragut, Bearden, Karns, Hardin Valley) but I have no info on elementary or middle. You'll find that you have a lot of great choices for neighborhoods but you'll have to spend a little more per square foot than if you were some other places in Knoxville. It's still affordable, though, and depending on where you live you can avoid city property taxes.

[101stDad]

Right now in Knox County one is pretty much tied to the school for which they are zoned.  There are some options, particuarly for minority students and students wanting to take subjects that aren't offered in the school for which you are zoned (Hardin Valley was mentioned), but those transfers are harder to come by now than they were just a few years ago.  

If you are going to buy in the Cedar Bluff area, be sure you buy in a subdivision zoned Bearden High, Farragut High, or Hardin Valley Academy (which is really a public high school with a artsy fartsy sounding name.  It isn't any different from the other public high schools).  Avoid the Karns High zone.  All of the elementary schools in those zones seem to be good.  

I will flat out tell you that I am dead biased on Murfvol's suggestion - Powell is a very good option right now for real estate.  You will get a lot more for your money in a home than in West Knoxville.  The Powell schools are good - Powell High's test scores are generally 4th or 5th among the 14 public high schools in Knox County.  Farragut/Bearden/Hardin Valley are 1-2-3, with Powell close behind over the last several years.  Powell has more of a small town feel, even though it is in Knox County, than do the West Knoxville communities.  The schools are all very good in Powell, as well.  

[Clockwork Orange]

The Powell schools are good

I will only add my personal experience here . . . when I was in school ~15 years ago Powell High lacked many courses that were available in the west Knox schools. That may well be different now but when it comes to course offerings, size matters.

Also, I'm just curious why you say to avoid Karns. I keep hearing that it's one of the most improved schools around, largely because of the growth of that community.

[101stDad]

I will only add my personal experience here . . . when I was in school ~15 years ago Powell High lacked many courses that were available in the west Knox schools. That may well be different now but when it comes to course offerings, size matters.

Also, I'm just curious why you say to avoid Karns. I keep hearing that it's one of the most improved schools around, largely because of the growth of that community.

What I get from parents and contacts there is that the "higher achievers" from that zone are opting to go to Hardin Valley because of the offerings that HV has that Karns doesn't, leaving Karns with some issues right now.  

Powell is catching up in AP/Honors types of courses.  No, it's not Farragut or Bearden, but does offer many more options than it did when you were there and the chances of actually being able to enroll in those advanced classes are very good.  

And an edit:  I'm not going to blow smoke and tell you that everything is hunky dory at Powell, just like it isn't at Bearden, Farragut, Hardin Valley, or anywhere in the county right now, either.  The Knox County Schools Administration is just plain clueless at this point.  The administrators and faculties in the school buildings are doing the best they can with what they are being provided, but the Central Office administration seems to have its priorities in areas other than what is best for the system as a whole.  If my kids were still school aged, Mrs. 101st and I would be looking long and hard at all of the educational options in our area.  That said, Powell is still a very good school.  The facutly and administration by and large are doing their best to do what they are supposed to - educate the kids - in spite of the system leadership.

[Clockwork Orange]

Powell is catching up in AP/Honors types of courses.  No, it's not Farragut or Bearden, but does offer many more options than it did when you were there and the chances of actually being able to enroll in those advanced classes are very good. 

Good to hear. When I was a senior I couldn't even take physics because there weren't enough students for one section of it. Then again I was in a graduating class without a large number of college-bound students and that might have been a factor.

[MIAUTIGER]

And if you need a really good realtor -- IM me and I'll send you to my big brother!  He'll treat you right, even if you are an Aubie! HA!   Also, he lives down in that area, and 2 children attend school in the area, so he might could help you out there as well.

Thanks, Granny.  I may very well take you up on that, if it gets to that.  In case you haven't caught on, I have an interview with a company in the Cedar Bluffs area, but I did not know very much about West-K-ville.  I am only familiar with the Maryville/Alcoa area. 

If I actually get to the point of an offer, I will send you a message asking for his contact info.

[MIAUTIGER]

....I need some input.  What are the better school systems around the Cedar Bluff area?  And how do school assignments occur there?  Is there a School of Choice system available, or does your child have to go to the school that is associated with where you live?  I am talking about the area around Cedar Bluff, Farragut, Concord.....maybe even up to Ball Camp? I am not familiar with these areas at all, but see them on MapQuest around Cedar Bluff.

Thanks for any help you can provide here.

Thanks everyone for your information.  Good to know what is down there and available.

[10EC]

Thanks, Granny.  I may very well take you up on that, if it gets to that.  In case you haven't caught on, I have an interview with a company in the Cedar Bluffs area, but I did not know very much about West-K-ville.  I am only familiar with the Maryville/Alcoa area. 

If I actually get to the point of an offer, I will send you a message asking for his contact info.

If you can live in Blount County, I HIGHLY suggest Maryville schools.  Pellisippi Parkway is a quick trip to West Knoxville. 

If you want cheap private, check out Concord Christian.  My kids go there and it is excellent.

[GreggO]

We moved to Knoxville back in '92 and I worked off Cedar Bluff on Executive Park Dr. (as an executive, of course!). My son went to Cedar Bluff schools and Bearden High. He took all the AP classes he could and when he got his scholarship to Lipscomb, he was 4hrs short of being a sophmore. Since he wanted the 4yr college experience, this allowed him to double-major in history and poly-sci. From there he got a ride at grad-school at Texas A&M, the Bush School of Government & Public Service where they only took 60 students a year. He works in DC now for our Uncle Sam.

I am very happy with the Cedar Bluff Schools and Bearden High and the educational opportunities provided. My son was an over-acheiver, but what he wanted was available to him.

Cedar Bluff is crowded, but when we moved there available to us within 2 miles was 4 different grocery chains, Wal-Mart & Sam's came in, our doctors, hospital, schools, dry cleaners (scads of them),4-5 pharmacies, employers, farm-to-marker store, everything was right there. Even a multitude of good restaurants are close by and you can't go wrong with Bailey's Sports Bar for adult beverages, pool, and wings and they even let you smoke a cigar.

I'm on the backside of 50 and have lived in a few places, but other than Houston when I lived off 45 and had Hobby Airport close by, I've never had it so convenient and I sure can't argue enough for those schools as they were before my son graduated on 2000.

G

Although I hated negotiating Cedar Bluff Rd., it's less than 3 miles long and can be avoided

[UT Mom]

I must be in the minority but I would keep away from Bearden.   Three of mine graduated there and it was great. TRO and BtheVol included.
But, I have one grandson that graduated there, and you had to be in with the band group, the sports group, or the drugies.  His words not mine.  Part of Cedar Bluff homes are in Harden valley system and some in Bearden High schools.   And if you want to go the private route Catholic High and Webb are first rate.

[GreggO]

I must be in the minority but I would keep away from Bearden.   Three of mine graduated there and it was great. TRO and BtheVol included.
But, I have one grandson that graduated there, and you had to be in with the band group, the sports group, or the drugies.  His words not mine.  Part of Cedar Bluff homes are in Harden valley system and some in Bearden High schools.   And if you want to go the private route Catholic High and Webb are first rate.

Uhhh, I believe mom is probably correct. Chris was in the band and like all high schools, it's clique-ish for sure. My step-son, my boy since he was 9, believed in competing about grades! The boy has none of my genes and it shows.

I tried to qualify by saying Chris had been out of there since 2000 and was an over-achiever; but, at the same time I have no problems as I said before. I think your kids could do worse than what we thought was great education some 11-12 years ago since Chris' graduation. That's a long time, take it all in.

G

[TheRealOrange]

I must be in the minority but I would keep away from Bearden.   Three of mine graduated there and it was great. TRO and BtheVol included.
But, I have one grandson that graduated there, and you had to be in with the band group, the sports group, or the drugies.  His words not mine.  Part of Cedar Bluff homes are in Harden valley system and some in Bearden High schools.   And if you want to go the private route Catholic High and Webb are first rate.

Well, I hate to burst any bubbles here, but it was that way in the 70s and 80s too.  Many students migrated to specific groups -- band geeks, freaks (probably the current "drugies"), jocks, etc.  Heck, just watch Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) to see the same thing.  It's a high school thing, not a Beaden High School thing.  I have seen Facebook status entries from high school students from Tennessee, Alabama, PA/Philly, California, etc. over the past couple years, and it seems the same (or very similar) almost everywhere.  I would not let the clique thing dissuade me from choosing a school.  I was easily able to hang with people in many of the groups and still stay in touch with friends from all of the groups.  One Facebook friend from Bearden recalled that that was one of the things he admired in me -- the ability to cross groups easily.  Your other son was much the same.  Individual personality will always play a large role in that aspect of high school life.  The grandson you mentioned hung with the "car" group in addition to being in the band.  It's just the way he chose to do it.   

Bearden (and Farragut) have always had great pre-college programs and a high percentage of the students go to college and do well.  If I lived in West Knoxville, I would not hesitate to send my kids there (or Farragut or Hardin Valley).  Students will get out of the schools what they put in.  Some things never change (or at least not as much as we sometimes think).    

[EmerilVOL]

....I need some input.  What are the better school systems around the Cedar Bluff area?  And how do school assignments occur there?  Is there a School of Choice system available, or does your child have to go to the school that is associated with where you live?  I am talking about the area around Cedar Bluff, Farragut, Concord.....maybe even up to Ball Camp? I am not familiar with these areas at all, but see them on MapQuest around Cedar Bluff.

Thanks for any help you can provide here.

Let me add a couple of things to your mix....first of all if you go just a wee bit farther out than Farragut you can avoid the HIGH HIGH Knox county taxes and get more bang for your housing dollar.  By going right over the Loudon County line you can end up with a tax rate that is 1/2 of the tax rate in West Knox County and Farragut area.  Living in the Cedar Bluff area means you will be paying City and County taxes there in many places.   Sooooooo come out to just over the Loudon County line and get some breaks on your taxes.  For example when we lived in Knox County (out near Pellissippi Parkway) we were paying almost exactly what we are payng in taxes now for a house 1/2 the size of the one we are now in. 

As far as schools you can also check out CAK and Webb School which are very good private schools also if you are of that bent.

[Clockwork Orange]

Let me add a couple of things to your mix....first of all if you go just a wee bit farther out than Farragut you can avoid the HIGH HIGH Knox county taxes and get more bang for your housing dollar.  By going right over the Loudon County line you can end up with a tax rate that is 1/2 of the tax rate in West Knox County and Farragut area.  Living in the Cedar Bluff area means you will be paying City and County taxes there in many places.   Sooooooo come out to just over the Loudon County line and get some breaks on your taxes.  For example when we lived in Knox County (out near Pellissippi Parkway) we were paying almost exactly what we are payng in taxes now for a house 1/2 the size of the one we are now in. 

This is a good point but if you choose wisely you can avoid city taxes in West Knox as well.

One more point, MIAU. Looking at a map it is not always intuitive which school zone you are in in Knox County. I just checked on mine out of curiosity and found out we are zoned for Bearden Middle, but West High. We are less than 4 miles from Bearden High and more than 6 miles from West High, but zoned for West. Just one of those things.

If all goes well and it looks like you may make the move, you can use this search tool to see what school zones a certain address is in:

http://www.kgis.org/Portal/OnlineData/SchoolZoneSearch/tabid/41/Default.aspx

[Clockwork Orange]

One more point, MIAU. Looking at a map it is not always intuitive which school zone you are in in Knox County. I just checked on mine out of curiosity and found out we are zoned for Bearden Middle, but West High. We are less than 4 miles from Bearden High and more than 6 miles from West High, but zoned for West. Just one of those things.

But there is this as a general guide (though it shows my house in the Bearden zone . . . go figure):

EDIT: Obviously this map is pre-Hardin Valley so things have changed. The KCS site links to KGIS for a map and this is the only one I saw.

[101stDad]

But there is this as a general guide (though it shows my house in the Bearden zone . . . go figure):

EDIT: Obviously this map is pre-Hardin Valley so things have changed. The KCS site links to KGIS for a map and this is the only one I saw.

That map is obsolete, CW.  When Hardin Valley opened it changed the entire county high school zones. For instance, everything west of Clinton Highway from Pleasant Ridge to the Anderson County line that used to be Powel zone is now Karns zone.  Families that have lived in Powell for generations and are 3 miles from Powell High and 9 miles from Karns High are now zoned Karns.  Another example is that The Norwood area - from Pleasant Ridge where Northwest Middle is up to I-640, over to the railroad tracks where Merchant become Cedar Lane - is now Powell zone, and not Central as it has been for decades.

The issue with building Hardin Valley was supposedly to relieve overcrowding at Farragut and Bearden.  The result was that the Karns, Powell, and Central zones were the most altered zones because of it. 

[Clockwork Orange]

That map is obsolete, CW.  When Hardin Valley opened it changed the entire county high school zones. For instance, everything west of Clinton Highway from Pleasant Ridge to the Anderson County line that used to be Powel zone is now Karns zone.  Families that have lived in Powell for generations and are 3 miles from Powell High and 9 miles from Karns High are now zoned Karns.  Another example is that The Norwood area - from Pleasant Ridge where Northwest Middle is up to I-640, over to the railroad tracks where Merchant become Cedar Lane - is now Powell zone, and not Central as it has been for decades.

The issue with building Hardin Valley was supposedly to relieve overcrowding at Farragut and Bearden.  The result was that the Karns, Powell, and Central zones were the most altered zones because of it.  

Yep, I noted the obsolescence. Just wanted to provide a graphical guide and it seems that is the most up-to-date one out there . . . which is sad. The only way to know for sure is to do the address search above, I think.

[MIAUTIGER]

Let me add a couple of things to your mix....first of all if you go just a wee bit farther out than Farragut you can avoid the HIGH HIGH Knox county taxes and get more bang for your housing dollar.  By going right over the Loudon County line you can end up with a tax rate that is 1/2 of the tax rate in West Knox County and Farragut area.  Living in the Cedar Bluff area means you will be paying City and County taxes there in many places.   Sooooooo come out to just over the Loudon County line and get some breaks on your taxes.  For example when we lived in Knox County (out near Pellissippi Parkway) we were paying almost exactly what we are payng in taxes now for a house 1/2 the size of the one we are now in. 

As far as schools you can also check out CAK and Webb School which are very good private schools also if you are of that bent.

Thanks, Emeril.  Regarding taxes, it cannot be worse than in Michigan, especially where we live. I have a 2800 sq. ft. home on .78 acres, and pay >$5500 a year. Friggin ripoff compared to the services we get out of that (i.e. still have to pay for garbage collection).

Anyway, thanks for the tax information. We will keep in mind if we get to that point.

[BigOrange Maniac]

Or, you could just settle on the beautiful Cumberland Plateau (sandwiched by the Big South Fork national park to the west and the Cumberland Mountains to the east) and make the 1-hr. commute to Knoxville. Low taxes, friendly people...and a rotten economy (unemployment >20%), which means you could buy a home dirt cheap. 

[EmerilVOL]

Thanks, Emeril.  Regarding taxes, it cannot be worse than in Michigan, especially where we live. I have a 2800 sq. ft. home on .78 acres, and pay >$5500 a year. Friggin ripoff compared to the services we get out of that (i.e. still have to pay for garbage collection).

Anyway, thanks for the tax information. We will keep in mind if we get to that point.

Yeah that suxes for the tax amount ... it is nowhere near that kind of rip off in Beautiful East TN that I see from your post .... but of all the counties with access to Knoxville, Loudon or Roane are probably the best west of Knoxville and the thing I like about where i live is that I am 15 minutes from Turkey Crek and 30 minutes or less from Pellissippi Parkway where I work so it is not a bad place to live and then have to go to work.....

(Damn when am I ever going to win Powerball...... )

You can also look in the Anderson County area towards Clinton and Oak Ridge.  There are some opportunities in Oak Ridge and Clinton to acquire some beautiful land and not be taxed to death.  Both are good places to raise your kids with Clinton being that very idealized East TN burg with the courthouse square and the high school just behind it where the integration issue of the schools hit East TN full force in the face.

I prefer the area west of downtown Knoxville but that is just me.  101 will tell ya North in P'al and others will say Maryville, but i think Loudon County and Lenoir City area is some of the finest in the East TN area and there are some major deals in the my subdivision also.  In fact recently the house next to me which was a bank foreclosure was sold way below the book value.    

[UT Mom]

Emeril,
Your right, if I hadn't had my house in west Knoxville for 42 years, I would move out where you are too.
Also if Miautiger is moving from Michigan, he will get twice the price for his present house then he will pay here.
(Dam) Yankees, moving down here !      


And yes I know UT Pop was one also,  but he became one of us...

[MIAUTIGER]

Emeril,
Your right, if I hadn't had my house in west Knoxville for 42 years, I would move out where you are too.
Also if Miautiger is moving from Michigan, he will get twice the price for his present house then he will pay here.
(Dam) Yankees, moving down here !      


And yes I know UT Pop was one also,  but he became one of us...

Mrs. UTMom, I am NOT a Yankee, just to be clear on that point. I am an Alabama raised southern-fried redneck, thank you very much.  Now, I did marry a Yankee that I met in TN in hopes that I could Southernize her. How's that going, you say? She is just now starting to call all drinks Coke and kinda likes Sweet Tea.....kind of. She does like going to SEC football games, though, so I have won in that area.