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Topic starter
Hello,
I am posting because my partner and I , and our two children, ages 5 and 9, might be moving to St Thomas this summer. I am in the process of interviewing for a position at University of the Virgin Islands, and things are moving along quickly. Next steps would be for them to fly us down there for a final interview and "scouting trip". I have been doing as much research as one possible can on the web, but have never personally been to the Caribbean. I grew up in Illinois, then lived most of my adult life in San Francisco, and now the past 6 years in snowy and very cold Wisconsin. My partner, was born and raised in the Caribbean, in the Dominican Republic and then Puerto Rico. We also have two dogs that we definitely will be moving.
Housing will be an immediate concern. I hope to fly down in the next 2-3 weeks, and would love to have a list of places to look at then. What neighborhoods, parts of the island should we look at? What area are there schools we should look at for the boys? How hard is it to rent something that accepts dogs? (We plan on renting for at least the first year, so would need a one year lease minimally). We would like to keep the rent to around 2000 to 2500 a month. We realize also that private schools might be a better option, but I am wondering if anyone on this board has had good experiences with public school, especially for younger kids.
Well that's enough for now. Please feel free to give any and all advice that you can think of to help guide a professional family with 2 kids and 2 dogs!! Thanks so much!
Steve
Posted : May 18, 2014 5:27 pm
Depends where you send your kids to school and where you and husband will work.
You'll want to settle where you can commute to all those different places with relative ease so decide on those factors first.
You'll want to be a 2 car family as with you working at UVI that's pretty far to drive if you live mid island, your kids go to Antilles on south side or Montessori on the east end and you're commuting to UVI on the west end and traffic patterns at those times of day for dropping
off and picking kids up, getting back and forth to work yourselves.
Neighborhoods here aren't like those in the states that you are used to.
Will the airlines fly your dogs in the summer?
Fiinding a rental that allows pets may be more costly as many home owners don't wish to have tenants with pets. You may have to pay an additional pet deposit along with the first, last and security deposit. Finding a fenced in property for your pets may be challenging.
Posted : May 18, 2014 7:22 pm
It might be easier to work with an agent since you've never been here. There are probably some listed somewhere on this site. A realtor can tell you things you probably won't think to ask.
Posted : May 18, 2014 9:50 pm
Topic starter
Hi Again,
Well its getting more and more real and very fast. I received word that the University wants me to fly down for interviews next week, Monday. I will take your advice and connect with an agent to see some apartments and neighborhoods. We may need one fast, lol! Anyone want to do dinner one night and share some insights and advice?
What schools should we look at? Is it a forgone conclusion we must use private schools, or there any decent public one? Thanks so much!
Steve
Posted : May 20, 2014 11:34 am
as another poster said, if you land the job you will need to figure out how to get your dogs here if the temps are too hot to fly the dogs. also some airlines have restrictions on types of dogs and cats they fly, so you will need to look into all of that. you will need a cert from vet within ten days of your flight also
Posted : May 20, 2014 12:05 pm
Topic starter
Oh, and also forgot...do any of you have a recommendation on a realtor who might be able to show us some rentals next week, Thursday or Friday while we are there?
Thanks!
Steve
Posted : May 20, 2014 3:41 pm
At your interview, you may want to ask if they have some kind of metering type of program/system available for new hires that are coming from off island. Asking questions here, and reading previous posts is a great start, but the university may have something in place to help new hires relocated and adjust to island life.
As mentioned… the dogs may be a problem getting here during the summer months. Many of the airlines have an embargo during the summer months due to the fact that most of them don't have temperature controlled cargo areas for larger animals. So please look into that as well.
A lot of 'transplant' people put their kids into private schools. They can be expensive, look at Antilles and the Montessori on St. Thomas, they both have websites with tuition and other enrollment requirements. If you can at all swing it, you should see if you could tour a public elementary school on this trip. It would be good for you to see a school while school is still in session so you can see how it operates. The public schools here definitely have their challenges, but I would immediately strike them off the list until you at least visit one or several of them.
Posted : May 21, 2014 9:20 am
You should set aside a day to visit public and private schools while you're here. A few kids prefer public school because some private schools don't offer the sports or music programs they want to pursue. Parental involvement is the most important factor in a student's success, imo.
Will your partner need a job? The university is on the west side of the island, and most of the government and commercial activities are in town, in the center, or on the east end of the island. There are housing opportunities on the west end, but not much else for now. I think the closest public elementary school is Gladys Abraham. The school looks depressing, but they have some very dedicated teachers, from what I've seen. The school has a garden and sells their plants at carnival every year. The choir produced a cd of local songs.
You should google "virgin islands camps" to see what's available for kids in the summer if you're planning to move very soon. There are so many available, and they fill up quickly. There are music camps, basketball camps, theater camps, nature camps, etc.
Good luck!
Posted : May 21, 2014 9:51 am
