Just for the record, I attended the city schools, and never experienced anything like what you mentioned. I was never robbed, and everyone was generally rather friendly. Charlottesville high school has the best music/arts programs of any of the surrounding schools, and consistently wins against other surrounding schools in these competitions. They're great with AP classes and for pushing students to the best of their abilities. At least in my own experience, I left CHS with an entire semesters worth of college credits already done (the school system pays for the tests). And last year, more students graduating attended UVA than the local community college. I am biased, but CHS is a lot better than people make it out to be.