Quiet Upscale Neighborhood
-
12/16/2010
River Forest as a whole is an old suburb outside of Chicago, very quiet and upscale. River Forest neighbors Oak Park, which does have much more to offer in terms of public activities. However, those looking for a quieter lifestyle in a more conservative family oriented suburb might find River Forest a great fit!
River Forest is home to Dominican University, which is a private school with a good business school. Concordia University also makes its home in River Forest, which is a progressive private school known for its education and Lutheran studies programs. Both schools have fine and performing arts to share with the community and make their resources available to an extent for residents of the area.
Oak Park high school used to be one of the top public schools in the state several years ago. While I do agree that OPRF high school is just "ok" now there is a problem with students attending the high school from outside of the area. This would not be a problem, except, many are not paying the out of area tuition to attend the high school. They get around this by placing their primary residence with a relative living in Oak Park, but their parents live outside of the area. OPRF residents pay a high tax rate to support the high school, so why should a student from outside of the area get to attend without paying tuition? OPRF does invest much of its resources in security, as there have been threats of gang issues from the inner city threatening students of the school. I can attest to all of this because I am an OPRF resident and graduate of the high school.
For those not wanting their children in the public school system, there are good private grammar schools and high schools in River Forest and Oak Park Trinity High School, located in River Forest is a very good all girls Catholic college prep school. Fenwick High School, located in Oak Park, is a Co-ed Catholic high school, which are great alternatives to the public high school. Both schools require entrance examinations and have been in operation for over 100 years.
Overall, River Forest is a quite upscale residential community geared for raising children and for those who commute to downtown Chicago.
Anon | Oak Park, IL