Southern Santa Clara County
Southern Santa Clara County is the heart of the Silicon Valley and the center of the high-tech world. Companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Apple Computer, Intel and Sun Microsystems are located here. The area rode the dot-com boom in the 1990s and suffered the most when the bubble burst. At the time, a full 10 percent of jobs dried up and many had to move away, but the industry and the area are experiencing a resurgence of growth. As the largest of the nine Bay Area counties, Santa Clara County is the fifth-most populous county in California, with 24 percent of the Bay Area’s population living within its jurisdiction.
The county, with its diverse population, high standard of living and strong economic vitality, has attracted people from all over the world. Its location provides residents with a suburban lifestyle, while providing close access to nature and the outdoors.
Education
Santa Clara County supports 389 schools with a student enrollment of 255,722 and 12,601 teachers earning an average of $68,745. The county also supports four community colleges.
For more information:
Santa Clara County Office of Education
1290 Ridder Park Dr.
San Jose, CA 95131
408-453-6500
www.sccoe.k12.ca.us
Community Colleges:
West Valley-Mission
Community College District:
Mission College, Santa Clara,
408-988-2200
Foothill College, Los Altos Hills
650-949-7777
Largest Cities in Santa Clara County
San Jose (population 929,936) is the largest city in the Bay Area and the third-largest city in California, behind Los Angeles and San Diego. Once an agricultural community, it has transitioned into a leading high-tech center and home to more than 6,600 technology companies employing more than 254,000 people. Recognized as one of the best-managed cities in America, it maintains and supports a modern infrastructure, which includes Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport, commuter rail (CalTrain), bus and a light-rail system that connects San Jose to the greater Bay Area. Among the largest private employers in San Jose include Cisco Systems, IBM, eBay, Hitachi and Agilent Technologies. Thanks to community redevelopment efforts, the city’s downtown is transforming into a 24-hour urban city center where residents can live, work and play.
The city supports a rich variety of performing arts venues, including Opera San Jose, Ballet San Jose Silicon Valley, Center for the Performing Arts, Children’s Musical Theater San Jose, San Jose Jazz Festival and the San Jose Repertory Theater. Families can also enjoy the San Jose Museum of Art, the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles and the Tech Museum of Innovation.
The education level of the San Jose metropolitan area workforce is one of the highest in the U.S. – 67 percent of the workforce has some college education, and 40 percent have earned a college degree. Higher education resources include San Jose State University, Evergreen Valley College, Lincoln Law School of San Jose, National Hispanic University, San Jose City College and St. Mary’s College of California.
There is a wide range of housing options – all the way from studio apartments to multimillion-dollar gated estates. You’ll also find elegant Victorians and early 20th century ranch homes. As in general with large cities, the further away you are from downtown, the more suburban the area becomes.
Among the best known neighborhoods in the city include Downtown Museum District, Rose Garden neighborhood, Naglee Park, Willow Glen, Evergreen, Santa Teresa, Almaden Valley, Japantown, Burbank, Buena Vista, Edenvale and Great Oaks. According to www.bestplaces.com, the median home cost in San Jose is $759,000. For more information about San Jose, visit www.ci.san-jose.ca.us.
Sunnyvale
Known as “Tree City USA,” Sunnyvale (population 130,159) takes pride of its 36,000 trees. While it is known as a high-tech center, it also places a high value on recreational amenities, including parks, tennis courts, golf courses and a nature preserve. You’ll find a wide variety of housing options, including townhouses, Mediterranean-style homes as well as mansions.
Other cities in Santa Clara County:
Campbell
www.ci.campbell.ca.us
Cupertino
www.cupertino.org
Los Gatos
www.los-gatos.ca.us
Milpitas
www.ci.milipitas.ca.gov
Santa Clara
www.santaclara.org
www.ci.stant-clara-us.us
Select Private Schools -
Mountain View
German International School of
Silicon Valley
310 Easy St.
Mountain View, CA 94043
650-254-0748
www.gissv.org
Girls’ Middle School
180 North Rengstorff Ave.
Mountain View, CA 94043
650-968-8338
www.girlsms.org
Mountain View Academy
360 South Shoreline Blvd.
Mountain View, CA 94041
650-967-2324
www.mtnviewacademy.org
St. Francis High School
1885 Miramonte Ave.
Mountain View, CA 94040
650-968-1213
www.sfhs.com
St. Joseph School
1120 Miramont Ave.
Mountain View, CA 94040
650-967-1839
www.sjmv.org
St. Stephen Lutheran School
320 Moorpark Way
Mountain View, CA 94041
650-961-2071
www.ssls.org
Yew Chung International School—
Silicon Valley
310 Easy St.
Mountain View, CA 94043
650-903-0976
www.ycef.com
Select Private Schools -
San Jose
Almaden Preparatory School
5670 Camden Ave.
San Jose, CA 95124
408-723-9017
www.almadenprep.com
Bellarmine College Preparatory School
960 West Hedding St.
San Jose, CA 95126
408-294-9224
www.bcp.org
Five Wounds School
1390 Five Wounds Lane
San Jose, CA 95116
(408) 293-0425
www.fivewounds.org
Liberty Baptist School
2790 South King Rd.
San Jose, CA 95122
408-274-5613
www.libertybaptist.org
Notre Dame High School
596 South Second St.
San Jose, CA 95112
408-294-1113
www.ndsj.org
Our Lady of Grace Nativity School
310 Edwards Ave.
San Jose, CA 95110
408-993-1293
www.shnativity.org
Pine Hill School-Second Start
1325 Bouret Dr.
San Jose, CA 95118
408-979-8210
www.secondstart.org
Presentation High School
2281 Plummer Ave.
San Jose, CA 95125
408-264-1664
www.pres-net.com
St. Patrick School
51 North Ninth St.
San Jose, CA 95112
408-283-5858
www.stpatrickschool.org
St. Stephen’s Episcopal School
420 Allegan Circle
San Jose, CA 95123
408-365-2927
www.saintstephensschool.org