<p>My family is considering relocating to Hanover, NH from S. California. We have children who would be in elementary school and middle school and soon high school. I would love to hear from people who live there, especially people who have moved into the area "mid-life". How did it go? Were people friendly and welcoming? Did anyone purchase a home that is located in the area where Dartmouth has first right of refusal on your home? This seems scary--maybe it isn't an issue. How difficult is it to get employement at Dartmouth? Do you have to have an "in" to get "in"? How are the public schools there? Pluses, minuses, any tips, advice, input, info--anything is welcome.</p>
<p>Hanover High might be one of the best public high schools in the country.</p>
<p>Our family did relocate to Hanover for a few years. Kids attended the grade school and middle school-a fabulous experience for them. As a parent, I was thrilled with the education and values we found in the public school system. We felt very welcomed and the community was warm and friendly. I would have been quite happy staying there, but it was a job thing. </p>
<p>Because we knew we were "temporary" and on a tight budget, we rented, so I can't address the housing questions. We were fortunate to live very close to town and next to the campus, which we enjoyed very much. The college "activity" did not bother us one bit, actually found it quite fun to be sort of in the middle of it all. If you are looking at homes with a Dartmouth FROR, you must be considering in town houses.</p>
<p>You are aware that it gets cold there, right? I mean REALLY cold. The kids and I loved it, but dh found it a bit too intense for his thinner blood (he grew up in So CA and had never really lived in a truly cold climate). Ultimately the work he wanted to do wasn't going to happen in Hanover, though a lot of Dartmouth grads do seem to find ways to stay or move back to Hanover later in life. The Green tends to get in the blood, which says a lot about the place. Work opportunities are there, depending on the field (higher education and medical being two of the big draws).</p>
<p>It's a different way of life, especially compared to So. CA. Good luck working through the decision. Mid life change can be a great thing.</p>
<p>maybeivy:</p>
<p>while you didn't specifically address the ahem, local college, please note that Dartmouth's class of '10 only has one matriculant from Hanover High.....</p>
<p>Bluebayou--so are you saying that the education from the local high school isn't good enough to get into Dartmouth? I wouldn't expect that the local high school gets any preference over any other high school--but I could be wrong about that. Being that my kids are not in high school yet--I can't really say that they are even interested in going to an Ivy League school. As my name implies, I am not sure if the Ivy League will be in "our" future or not. But I would love my children to be exposed to the constant exposure that living in a good college town would provide. It seems that for both my husband and myself, along with the kids, there would be many opportunities to go to concerts, lectures, use the library, etc. If they choose the path of highest higher education--fabulous! If they choose to be the best restaurant owner or mechanic or mom that they can be--fabulous! I just want them to have the opportunity to make that choice. Our public high school in our city is horrible. So the only choice I have is private school (which is what we are doing now) or Troy High School in Fullerton --do you know about their success is with Dartmouth? If my kids don't get into Troy, I would absoluetly move rather than send them to public school here.</p>
<p>Slipper-Do your children go there?</p>
<p>Dogwood-We are in need of a change. My husband is an architect. I do small business management consulting. I think I can find work easily--maybe at Dartmouth or running a B&B would be my dream. I also have a client who is considering opening and office in the area, which I may get in on. I worry about my husband starting a new firm--it could be rough. Maybe he can do something completely different, which might be a really good thing.</p>
<p>We are originally from the Pacific NW (I went to WSU and it gets cold there at times). My husband loves to hunt, fish, and hike with our son. They both LOVE to ski and the thought of a ski team at school is very appealing to my son, however giving ups surfing is a big negative. I am not sure how we would do with the climate adjustment, but we are certainly aware of that issue.</p>
<p>I was looking at two larger, older homes that both had the FROR for Dartmouth. This concerned me--I wonder how often they come in and "take" a home out from under the buyer. Also I wondered if there would be restrictions to home businesses in these properties, especially a bed and breakfast.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the input--keep it coming.</p>
<p>Maybe:</p>
<p>In saying that there is only on Hanover High grad in the dart class of '01, Blue misses the fact that seven or eight HHS grads this yr were accepted to D, but most had other options they preferred to Dartmouth.</p>
<p>Hanover High is a very fine high schol that routinely sends a good number of kids , out of less than 200 graduating each yr, to top colleges.</p>
<p>I sent you a PM today, Maybe, but you may not have seen it. We moved to Hanover a few yrs ago; it is a wonderful palce to live and raise family, including schools. Would be glad to communicate off-line about Hanover and the region.</p>
<p>maybe:</p>
<p>absolutely no intention of disparating HH. Since it would have children of faculty members, it should do extremely well in acceptances to selective colleges, which is no different than say, Princeton HS.</p>
<p>going to a private high school in no way increases your chances for being accepted. That said, the number of matriculants from HH tends to vary. Several '08s on campus told me that there are something like 10 matriculants from HH in the class of 2009, but I'm not sure about the class of 2010, of which I am a part.</p>
<p>Rhino--I didn't get the private message--I just went and checked and there aren't any waiting for me, that I can see. I am sorry I am new to the board today, so I may have missed something. I would like to get more information from you about your experience. Try sending the private message again, so I can get you my email address.</p>
<p>We left Hanover before our kids got to high school, so I can't speak from direct experience. However, friends we've followed are doing just fine. It really is a great school district. The Hanover kids live and breath Dartmouth, I don't think it's surprising they decide to "go away to college". We've got a great public university in our backyard (UW in Seattle) but my kids are choosing to go away from home (alas, oldest didn't get in to Dartmouth). My oldest has former Hanover classmates attending great schools all over the country, including Dartmouth.</p>
<p>If you haven't yet, I'd strongly suggest a phone call to the local realtor to ask your questions about FROR and the B&B requirements. Are you familiar with the Norwich VT connection? Depending on your political persuasion...</p>
<p>We found it incredibly easy to settle into Hanover life when we made the move. Sounds like rhino may be a better local source for you, but I, too, would be willing to share more off line if you want.</p>
<p>In I'm A Stranger Here Myself, Bill Bryson talks about moving to Hanover (from England) with his family. It's a very entertaining read, though probably not very good actual research material.</p>
<p>Maybe-OK sent another private message to you now. let's see if it works</p>
<p>Thanks Garrrr--I will pick that book up today. It will fit in well with my collection of Peter Mayle and Erma Bombeck, two of my favorite humorists. Who knows what quirky insights I will find about Hanover. FUN!</p>
<p>Maybe, Hanover is a wonderful town and it can be a wonderful place to live, but please bear in mind that it can be a tough place to live as well. If your child is not a super achiever Hanover High can be a tough place to be a student, and if your income level isn't quite high it can be a tough town to live in. Even if you personally don't care that much about money, please realize that you will be living in a town where many of the people not affiliated with Dartmouth (although certainly not all) care a great deal about it. </p>
<p>Hanover is not like most New England towns. I would say that living in Hanover and having your child attend Hanover High is probably an experience more similar to living in Winnetka and having your child at New Trier than it is similar to living in a typical New England town. This can be both good and bad, but it is something that you might want to think about.</p>
<p>Shelf-Life--can you give me some examples of what you are talking about with the money issues. My children have been attending an expensive private school in Newport Beach, CA. Believe me, there isn't much that would shock me when it comes to people who love money, and have too much money. I have had people ask me if I was the kids' nanny, because I was driving a new Honda CRV, instead of the standard Hummer, Mercedes, Porsche. I have seen mom's who only attend their kids’ birthday parties--not put on the party--the nanny and party planners and caterers take care of that. They have catered tea sandwiches for 2nd graders and give out party "favors" that are worth over $20 EACH. I am a working mom, without a nanny or housekeeper, I bake my kids’ cakes from scratch and I don't like to spend money on gas! Honestly, I was trying to get away from some of the excessiveness. So do you think it will be about the same as what I am describing?</p>
<p>I go to Hanover High--the school is excellant and has an amazing reputation to boot. There are terrific resources with Dartmouth all around you--I take classes there myself. The renovation of the school will be done soon, and the new building looks great. Besides that, Hanover is one of the nicest places to live in the region.</p>
<p>also Dartmouth class of 09' has 9 students from Hanover High, and Dartmouth class of 10' has something like that as well.</p>
<p>I was also going to say that the class of '09 had a number of students from Hanover High. My D is an "09 and I thought she told me that the largest group from any high school represented in her class was from Hanover High *(with the second largest group being from Stuyvesant in NYC).</p>
<p>I have also found in visiting that, much to my surprise, the stores on the main street in Hanover are fairly expensive and the clothing stores sell items similar to what you would find in NYC and suburbs. When I asked D if the students were buying these clothes, she replied that it was not the college students, but the local teenagers who were shopping there.</p>
<p>Is it hard to get a job at Dartmouth? Do you have to know someone to "get in"? The benefits seem great on the website--are they all that they seem to be?</p>