Move to Chicago: thread 2, sorry, more help please..!

[shaktar]

Thank you so much to everyone who gave advice on my last thread, it's been an amazing help. We visited for a week, back yesterday, and I've more questions if you don't mind helping..

So, we had a tour with a relocation agent and saw all the areas we asked about: Oak Park (thinking this would be a comparison for N Shore), Evanston and a few places on the North Shore (bits of Wilmette, Highland Park, Lake Forest).

We ended up waiting 90 mins for a delayed train at Lake Forest which may have unfairly biased against the area but have essentially decided it's too far out (husband will be commuting to the Loop every day). I think we had some dream of stretches of beaches and lakeshore accessibility on the North Shore and have realised that is not the case. So: although it will ultimately depend on what houses are available close to a decent elementary school when we arrive we have loosely decided on Oak Park, Evanston, south North Shore.

Here is my question (sorry for epic post) - how safe is Oak Park? I feel ok about Evanston and North Shore but liked OP and we are concerned about availability of rental houses in Ev and NS after hearing horror stories from realtors. But, for every 3 online love ins for Oak Park there is a warning about safety regarding surrounding areas. Any experience or anecdotal evidence of how safe it is - particularly the commute into downtown - would be incredibly helpful.

Please chuck any advice you have at me anyway - offer letter will be signed next week to move in early Jan and then there's no going back (visa issue permitting) so I will be haunting this board regularly.

@Expressedways
Thank you - that's exactly the answer I, lazily, wanted to hear

They had chicken pox jabs a couple of years ago so I'm hoping if they get the Hep A shot then we will be as ok as we can be from this end.

Yes because vaccination is compulsory here, CPS need a specific form that only a Illinois paediatrician or family doctor can provide and they wouldn’t accept anything given by your British GP anyway. So based on my experience if the red book contains their full vaccination record then you’ll be just fine as it’s purpose is only for the doctor!

I hope prep is going well, it was a very chilly -17 this morning (not trying to scare you, promise).

I think to be on the safe side you should have a printout on letterhead of the shots in chronological order and with details about each shot (live, deactivated, whatever). The shot record should be signed by the doctor.
www.ops125.net/vimages/shared/vnews/stories/4e69309bf1af7/17-18%20grade%20level%20immunization%20requirements.pdf
Summary of Illinois immunization requirements by grade level.
There are minimum intervals between increments in series and for boosters, so watch out for compliance.

The nursing staff in the pediatrician's office will fill in the proper Illinois form using whatever proof of immunisation you bring, and then you can file the red book. The pediatrician will sign off on the record if satisfied with what you bring with you. All Chicago schools, public and private, require the proof of immunisation on the proper form.

They do preliminary vision and hearing testing in all Illinois schools, public and private iirc. If anything is flagged then you take your child for further testing yourself. One of my DCs ended up with glasses as a result of this protocol.

You have to get a dental exam done yourself. It's possible a recent dental exam from a British dentist would be acceptable, but again, letterhead and signature would be needed.

Just bring duvets and your favourite pillows - US beds and sheets come in different sizes from British, and duvets are less a thing here than they are in the UK.

You will find if renting that apartments, apart from executive relocation apartments, are unfurnished, so if you like your couch, armchairs, coffee table, dining room table, chairs, chests of drawers, desk, swivel chair, cushions, throw blankets, etc., bring them. In order to qualify as a bone fide bedroom in Illinois (possibly the entire US) for real estate description and pricing purposes there must be a built-in closet in the room, so bedroom storage items like free standing wardrobes might not be necessary.

I would bring decorative items that you love. Books, nice vases for flowers, pictures/wall art, rugs. Bookshelves can be pricey here (imo) - bring any freestanding units. Your pots and pans, crockery, baking dishes, cake pans, roasting pan, cutlery, utility knives, etc.

Bring a good stash of your favourite tea and coffee to last you until you find something here that you like. Also any squash the DCs like. It's virtually unknown here. You can find Polish blackcurrant squash in Tony's Finer Foods in Berwyn

If buying a condo or house, you will find that white goods (that term isn't used here) come with the property the vast majority of the time.

Plan on buying items like a blender, electric kettle, crockpot, instant pot, hand mixer/stand mixer, bread machine, hoover, hair dryer, straightener, etc.

If you have a Thermomix, bring it and use an adapter, but check prices first. I have a vague memory of them being more expensive and hard to find here.

The other day we were sorting through stuff that had been on shelves for years, and threw away a lot of things like UK DIY books, UK gardening books - different climate, and often different tools here.

You will find the vast majority of rental apartments come with fridge, oven, and very likely a dishwasher. More expensive /spacious and modern apartments will probably have a washer/dryer too. Otherwise you are looking at a laundry room in the building or basement.

Our cat and dog flew with United, no issues.
We've had a mild winter this year so hopefully it will stay that way.
Having said that I found my winter coats from the UK useless and had to buy better ones.

You'd need a transformer for a Thermomix, not just a converter. I don't recommend bringing anything with a motor.

We still have our British bed and have to order sheets from John Lewis online. We'll probably finally replace it soon.

Thank you everyone. It's bizarrely comforting knowing that you have all done this before me..

The next challenge will be finding somewhere to live

Apologies for highjacking... is there a good online resource to find out about schools and catchment areas in Chicago... and the US schooling system in general? Thanks!

Niche.com and Greatschools.org are both good.

www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/rankings-overview is also a good high school ranking system but I'd take it with a pinch of salt.

Thank you!

Good luck with finding somewhere to live. Have you got a realtor hired by the company to help you once you get there? Some temporary accommodation to live in for a few weeks/months? Quite a few friends have lived in short term 'executive apartments' when they've first arrived in new cities.

Niche/greatschools is useful but only to a point. the problem, in my opinion, is that it reflects a relatively limited set of factors. Schools that are wealthy and have parents who provide lots of extras will score 9 or 10 because of that--of course their kids are doing well on the state tests. The scores can say more about intake than quality of teaching or programs.

I'd be cautious about the ones that are really poorly ratedone of my DC attended a preschool class that was housed in a very poorly rated school. The preschool was fine as it was a regional special education class, but I could tell when I was there that I wouldn't have wanted him in there for schoolit was chaos.

Above a certain point i am less convinced. I'd put more stock in what extras the district offers, class size etc. It's frustrating to try to find all that out. With the younger children class size and and a fully rounded curriculum would be my big considerations. Some schools push math and English very hard so the kids do well on tests and ignore the rest as much as possible.

Yes, some info is just easier to find out locally. My younger two are at a high school that doesn't rank as high as the school their older sister went to, but it's the right school for them.

It has a lot of music, it offers programs at the nearby Arts and Technology school, its sports are much better, and it copes much much better with kids with additional needs like DS.

To find that kind of info from a distance you could try joining local Facebook groups, maybe.

I'd still avoid schools that are ranked really poorly, unless you have some good info as to why they might be OK.

Also, I'd note that sometimes schools aren't ranked at all in some of the listings, because of either poor data or a lack of data. My kids' two high schools have both been left out of the US News ranking some years because of data issues. Yet when they are ranked they're consistently in the top 250 nationwide.

Extras and class size are functions of the tax base, so no matter what way you look at it, you're using average income in any given school district as your method of sorting.

I agree that some Districts push English and math/science and hence the good scores, but again, if you dig a bit and notice that there is a great music programme or evidence of fine arts being encouraged you may well also see high English and math test scores, and further digging will reveal high average income..

The rule of thumb - better schools are found in better off Districts - tends to hold true.

Thanks everyone, this is all very useful info! We’re still in the very early stages of considering the move in 2021. We’re currently in Australia and we’re weighing up London or Chicago. London looks very unlikely from a job perspective now. We’ll have DCs aged 15, 12 and 8... the 12 year old has SEN so the schools really do need some careful planning.

I mostly agree mathanxiety, but read this article.

bangordailynews.com/2017/11/27/mainefocus/the-surprising-maine-county-that-sends-so-many-kids-to-college/

In Maine, one of the poorest counties is sending as high a proportion of students to college as the richest counties. Their student funding is actually much higher, and they offer much more community support. I admit to having a soft spot for Aroostock - it's another world up there.

I'd also warn anyone reading the US News rankings to bear in mind that the top schools are often selective magnet schools, which is automatically going to push up their rankings. If your child suits that kind of school, and can actually get in, then that's great for them, but they do serve a limited population.

But the reason Aroostook County made the news is that it is so unusual for a poor county to have well funded schools and massive support for student aspirations

Top schools in large cities tend to be magnet schools, but those in suburbs take everyone within their Districts and do their best with them. The better funded suburban schools tend to send more students to university in general and to top universities. There is a growing awareness too that many students prefer the vocational route.

Two or three generations of my ancestors lived in or around PEI, not a million miles from Aroostook - I may even have relatives in the region (ancestors all had huge families).

But the reason Aroostook County made the news is that it is so unusual for a poor county to have well funded schools and massive support for student aspirations

Of course. But it's worth being aware that there are counties like this, especially if you live in a poorer state like mine. BTW we only have one magnet school in Maine, and it's about as far from the big city as you can get - 300 miles away.

Things are definitely different in the Chicago area. I suspect many schools could do with the community spirit of Aroostook County.

@HoldMyLobster

We do have a realtor and are currently trying to confirm an AirBNB for the first month. I'm slightly concerned that there aren't that many rentals (who will allow pets) but trying not to freak out or spend hours squinting at photos online.

Current thought process is if you are on the North Shore but not walkable/quick drive to the lake, is there any point in being on the North Shore. I shall probably be pondering that at 3 am. Anyway, flights booked, too late to turn back now...

I can tell you that Lakeview has no views of the lake!!
Having pets will cut options down but we have managed to find a nice home that does allow them, it is possible.

if you are on the North Shore but not walkable/quick drive to the lake, is there any point in being on the North Shore.

Yes, the point is schools. (Though Oak Park, River Forest, and Riverside also have good schools, as do suburbs further west - LaGrange Park, Darien, Hinsdale, Clarendon Hills...)

And you will definitely appreciate the lake breezes in the dead of summer when temperatures can be a precious ten degrees F (or even more) lower on the North Shore or anywhere closer to the lake than 'inland'.