mocamom Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 I am coming out of lurking to introduce myself and ask a question. I have been stalking this board for a while now but never posted because, well frankly, I felt like I didn't have a lot to offer regarding advice, opinions, etc. since we have only been homeschooling a few years. I have four children - one in college, two in high school, and one in elementary school. I have learned so much from this board that I knew I needed to finally post because I think I am need of your specific help. We will be relocating to Texas in December somewhere near San Marcos, Texas. We can't seem to find a community college in New Braunfels nor San Marcos so think we will have to move to Buda, Dripping Springs, Driftwood, etc. area. My husband will work out of San Marcos. Are there any areas with an active homeschool group near these places? Is there somewhere else within 30 minutes of San Marcos that has a community college for my dual-enrolled kids as well as a homeschool community? Are there any areas that we should NOT look at specifically? We can live in temporary housing for up to 90 days if we need to, but I was hoping to start looking at specific areas now while we start selling our house here in Michigan. I know this is rude to quit stalking, introduce myself, and ask a question all at once, but I'm feeling overwhelmed right now. My kids love our homeschool community here (though it is very small and we don't do co-ops). If you could help I would definitely appreciate your time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 Hi! You should get yourself signed onto the Austin Area Homeschoolers Yahoo! groups and ask these excellent questions on the Discuss Board. I live in central Austin so don't have the info you need, but there are many, many homeschoolers in all the places you mention, and they'll be happy to answer your questions. If you fit their demographic, you might also try contacting CHEACT (Protestant Christian homeschool group in the Austin area). I'm not affiliated with them, so I don't know how helpful they'd be, but like AAH they have a big membership. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 I live at the other end--Round Rock--so I can't help much, other than to welcome you to Texas, and to second Violet Crown's advice to join Austin Area Homeschoolers. :seeya: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 I'm also on the north end and don't know a whole lot about what's available on the south side aside from Joan's Academy and I don't think it's far enough south for you. http://www.joansacademy.webs.com/ Joining aah is a great idea. We have folks from all around the Austin area on the loop. Somebody there is going to have the information you are looking for. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aah-discuss/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JuanitaL Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 How long would the drive from San Marcos to the north side of San Antonio be? It's a straight, flat shot going 80(ish) mph. (I miss San Antonio... sigh ... but we just figured out we could order HEB coffee online, so I have been reveling in my Houston Blend this week :hurray: ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mocamom Posted August 24, 2013 Author Share Posted August 24, 2013 Thank you for the help so far. May I ask for you ladies that live on the north side of town is the south or southwest side bad? We just have to be close to San Marcos. Thank you for the links and I will contact the yahoo group as well as CHEACT. My kids are excited to know that there are homeschool groups. They currently run for the cross country team and are trying to figure out if there is a team in Texas. JuanitaL I am not sure how far it would be - I will have to ask my husband. We didn't see a community college campus pop up in that area but we are only relying on the internet at this point. I didn't even find the AAH or the CHEACT group so I definitely could be missing something! Do you ladies know if a homeschooler can take more than two classes per semester at ACC? I know only two are paid for (and that is amazing to us because in MI we are all on our own!) but my oldest daughter is a Junior and trying to take as many classes as she can before graduating. She will be contacting ACC this week but wasn't sure if any of you knew the answer ahead of time! Thank you again for the help. I'm looking forward to selling the snow blower and being warm! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catalavaino Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 I'm also a lurker, but when we moved to Austin, we first stayed with my parents for a couple of months, and they live between Austin and San Marcos. I loved San Marcos. There's a great library with a lot of fun activities, and we found a Yahoo group called San Marcos Relaxed Homeschoolers (you can find them through Google). They meet at a park in San Marcos, and although most of the kids seemed to be elementary / middle school age, I got the impression that there was a lot going on, and that high school kids were involved as well. As far as community colleges, I'm not sure there's a campus in San Marcos. Austin CC (ACC) is opening one soon in Kyle, which is close, and there's one in south Austin that might not be much of a commute. I might start by asking San Marcos HS what their dual enrollment students do, and whether there would be an option to take classes at Texas State. I'm not sure there are any areas where I wouldn't live, but I do think that some of the newish neighborhoods east of I 35 lack a bit of charm, mostly because they were built in prairie / cow fields that didn't have any trees to begin with. I found Buda, Kyle, and western San Marcos to be relaxed, happy places, and the only real drawback I could see was that it was a long drive to go anywhere, even to the grocery store. Oh, and the heat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyJo Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 Oh, and the heat. What heat? We're in Brownwood, and I don't think the temp ever got above 111 degrees this summer. ;-) Welcome to Texas! I'm too far north to do you a bit of good, but welcome nonetheless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 Thank you for the help so far. May I ask for you ladies that live on the north side of town is the south or southwest side bad? Not at all; in fact the south-of-the-river side of Austin has become quite trendy. (When I was growing up, its reputation was for being couch-on-porch, flamingo-in-tire redneck. ;) ). The east side (east of the interstate) has the reputation for being the "bad" side of Austin, but if you look at the actual data, the southeast (south of the river, east of I-35), the northern portion that's north of Hwy 290 and between Hwy 183 (Research Blvd.) and I-35, and the area immediately west of the UT campus are the high-crime residential areas of Austin. If you're looking at the bedroom communities/ outlying towns like Dripping Springs or Buda, you're way outside the "bad" part of anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted August 24, 2013 Share Posted August 24, 2013 Dual credit rules at ACC as of last semester: Students can only take 2 dual credit classes at first. Once they have completed 12 credit hours with at least a 3.0 gpa and have at least a 3.0 high school gpa (not sure whether the gpa requirement is 3.0 or 3.5) and if they meet the minimum test score requirements (COMPASS, ACT, or SAT), then they can request permission to take additional courses. My oldest took 4 courses each semester at ACC her senior year. Right now, the first 12 dual credit classes at ACC are free to in-district students. You have to pay for the rest. http://www.austincc.edu/ecs/students/faqs.php Be careful to take note of whether the house you buy/rent is in an ACC taxing district or service district or neither. Dual credit is free if you are in a taxing district. Dual credit tuition/fees are discounted from the out-of-district rate if you live out-of-district, but in the service area. If you live outside the service area, you will pay a LOT. http://www.austincc.edu/locations/boundary_map.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXMary2 Posted August 25, 2013 Share Posted August 25, 2013 I'm also a lurker, but when we moved to Austin, we first stayed with my parents for a couple of months, and they live between Austin and San Marcos. I loved San Marcos. There's a great library with a lot of fun activities, and we found a Yahoo group called San Marcos Relaxed Homeschoolers (you can find them through Google). They meet at a park in San Marcos, and although most of the kids seemed to be elementary / middle school age, I got the impression that there was a lot going on, and that high school kids were involved as well. As far as community colleges, I'm not sure there's a campus in San Marcos. Austin CC (ACC) is opening one soon in Kyle, which is close, and there's one in south Austin that might not be much of a commute. I might start by asking San Marcos HS what their dual enrollment students do, and whether there would be an option to take classes at Texas State. I'm not sure there are any areas where I wouldn't live, but I do think that some of the newish neighborhoods east of I 35 lack a bit of charm, mostly because they were built in prairie / cow fields that didn't have any trees to begin with. I found Buda, Kyle, and western San Marcos to be relaxed, happy places, and the only real drawback I could see was that it was a long drive to go anywhere, even to the grocery store. Oh, and the heat. ACC has two locations in San Marcos - my son starts classes Monday at both locations. If you are "in district" the classes taken at high school campuses (even the evening ones) are free, otherwise at a campus the cost is $75. I don't live in San Marcos, but I use the library and it is worth the $50 a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mocamom Posted August 25, 2013 Author Share Posted August 25, 2013 Dual credit rules at ACC as of last semester: Students can only take 2 dual credit classes at first. Once they have completed 12 credit hours with at least a 3.0 gpa and have at least a 3.0 high school gpa (not sure whether the gpa requirement is 3.0 or 3.5) and if they meet the minimum test score requirements (COMPASS, ACT, or SAT), then they can request permission to take additional courses. My oldest took 4 courses each semester at ACC her senior year. Right now, the first 12 dual credit classes at ACC are free to in-district students. You have to pay for the rest. http://www.austincc.edu/ecs/students/faqs.php Be careful to take note of whether the house you buy/rent is in an ACC taxing district or service district or neither. Dual credit is free if you are in a taxing district. Dual credit tuition/fees are discounted from the out-of-district rate if you live out-of-district, but in the service area. If you live outside the service area, you will pay a LOT. http://www.austincc.edu/locations/boundary_map.php So based on this map Angie it looks likes Dripping Springs is in the service area but not the district. But, I only see two categories here besides out of state so this must mean Dripping Springs is quite a bit more, right? Am I reading this right? Unfortunately for us, it looks like my daughter will be considered out of state for an entire year which is even more for tuition than out of the district. I knew we would probably be facing this, but wow does it make it expensive for a community college credit! ACC has two locations in San Marcos - my son starts classes Monday at both locations. If you are "in district" the classes taken at high school campuses (even the evening ones) are free, otherwise at a campus the cost is $75. I don't live in San Marcos, but I use the library and it is worth the $50 a year. We looked on Zillow but didn't see any homes with our criteria. However, this is good to keep in mind because I am not confident that Zillow lists are accurate! This is good to know about the library card. We may be small here compared to Austin, but we have a great library system. Now availability of doctors - not so much which is one of the reasons I'm looking forward to moving!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted August 26, 2013 Share Posted August 26, 2013 Thank you for the help so far. May I ask for you ladies that live on the north side of town is the south or southwest side bad? We just have to be close to San Marcos. Thank you for the links and I will contact the yahoo group as well as CHEACT. My kids are excited to know that there are homeschool groups. They currently run for the cross country team and are trying to figure out if there is a team in Texas. JuanitaL I am not sure how far it would be - I will have to ask my husband. We didn't see a community college campus pop up in that area but we are only relying on the internet at this point. I didn't even find the AAH or the CHEACT group so I definitely could be missing something! Do you ladies know if a homeschooler can take more than two classes per semester at ACC? I know only two are paid for (and that is amazing to us because in MI we are all on our own!) but my oldest daughter is a Junior and trying to take as many classes as she can before graduating. She will be contacting ACC this week but wasn't sure if any of you knew the answer ahead of time! Thank you again for the help. I'm looking forward to selling the snow blower and being warm! Texas State University (TSU) is in San marcos. (It used to be Southwestern Texas I believe). When we first moved to Austin, we lived in South Austin because my husband was commutiing everyday to TSU. I would NOT live North Austin and do that commute. It was hard enough living South (Oak Hill, Del Valle) My son had childcare in Buda (Kyle/Buda are right next to each other, about midway between South Austin and San Marcos). and the commute from northish Austin (Manor) was brutal. ACC Hays is currently being built in Kyle. Maybe opening next Fall? Not sure. I don't think they are close enough to finish to open September. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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