The Lovejoy Independent School District is top-rated, not just in Collin County, but in the entire Lone Star State. The area is located 25 miles north of downtown Dallas, bordered by Allen Independent School District in the west, Plano in the south, Princeton Independent School District in the east, Wylie Independent School District in the southeast, and McKinney Independent School District in the northwest.
Founded in July 1917, the area was named after Mrs. J.L. Lovejoy, a local who was a strong advocate for the need to educate the youth to help give them a better future. In fact, she put her money where her mouth was as she donated $1,000 (a large amount at that time) along with some books to help promote her vision.
Lovejoy ISD was actually a result of the consolidation of Lick Springs and Forest Grove, and you can thank Claude Cecil Martin, a teacher from Collin County, for making that happen.
Apparently, Martin taught at the two schools and saw the need to consolidate them into one.
The school district covers about 20 square miles in Collin County. Most of the students come from Fairview, Lucas, McKinney and Allen.
One of the major reasons for its longevity is the quality of students produced by the high school. It’s actually classified as a 5A school district for academic, fine arts, and athletics competitions. Class 5A refers to schools with a student population between 1,060 and 2,099. The first senior class of the district graduated in 2010. Right now, it remains a school district with only one high school, whose population doesn’t exceed 1,900 pupils.
Today’s administration building, known as the Red School House, is steeped in history. It’s actually the site of the first Lovejoy Commons School System established in 1917.
The Story of the Penny
Those who visit the Red School House may notice a penny that is permanently embedded on the sidewalk. The penny can be traced back to the early ‘60s.
The story goes that two schoolboys were fighting over this very penny. Estelle Spurgin, the former principal of Lovejoy ISD, then took control of the situation.
She apparently asked everybody in the school to gather around the porch, including the two boys. She directed the two boys to apologize to each other and then she took the penny. She then buried the penny halfway into the concrete as a reminder to everybody about the need to treat each other with respect.
Lovejoy ISD Profile
There are three elementary schools in the public district — Lovejoy Elementary School, Hart Elementary School, and Puster Elementary School. They all serve students from kindergarten to grade 4. Meanwhile, the Sloan Creek Intermediate School serves students in grades 5 and 6. The school district also has a special program that identifies gifted kids so they can be supported accordingly.
Willow Springs Middle School, meanwhile, accommodates kids from grades 7-8 and they will continue on after that and go to Lovejoy High School.
Lovejoy ISD actually celebrated a milestone when it reached the Century mark in 2017. Not a lot of public school districts in the country have achieved that feat.
The Lovejoy ISD received several recognitions including the HEB Excellence in Education Award from Texas. It also grabbed the UIL Lone Star Cub two times. In terms of the Assessment of Academic Readiness exams or STAAR, Lovejoy ranked in the top 1% percentile among the 1,000+ public school districts in the state.
Lovejoy was one of only four school districts in the state that have received an “A” grade, as well as the grade of 97 on a 100-point scale.
This means that when you send your kids to the Lovejoy ISD, you can be assured that they are going to be well-prepared for college. In fact, many students have claimed that college came easy for them because of the good foundation they received from Lovejoy High School.
All in all, there are about 4,000 kids in the Lovejoy Independent School District from kindergarten through high school. It has really come a long way considering that there were only 10 students when the Lovejoy Commons School System started. In fact, in the 80s, there were only 150 students here.
Cities served by Lovejoy ISD
As already mentioned, Lovejoy ISD serves Lucas, Allen, McKinney, Fairview, and Wylie.
You have plenty of options when it comes to the neighborhood that you move into in order to be able to send your kids to the school district.
The cities of Lucas, Allen, McKinney, Fairview, and Wylie are very fortunate to be part of the school district. It’s actually one of the selling points of those cities. Some other selling points include living in the suburbs that offer most of the conveniences of modern living, while still retaining that small town hospitality and charm.
Lucas is an affluent neighborhood where houses are selling north of $400,000. That’s almost double the average house in Texas. McKinney offers houses at a much more affordable price and you can buy one for a modest price of $280,000. You can also find houses with generous square footage and a large yard in Fairview, where the average listing price is around $450,000.
Unlike Dallas, the neighborhoods surrounding Lovejoy Independent School District give you a lot of flexibility regarding your budget and what kind of home you can afford to buy. You can buy a single family detached home with two to three bathrooms for as little as $300,000.
All the neighborhoods surrounding Lovejoy ISD also tend to be peaceful and safe communities. This is one of the key advantages of the suburbs. While most people are very welcoming, they are also very vigilant when it comes to keeping the neighborhood safe. The police and fire departments are amply supported and they can respond to an emergency call in a matter of minutes.
Lovejoy ISD has a 10 rating, which makes it a very attractive destination for families who want a good education for their kids.
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