Cuyahoga Falls is a small city of about 50,000 residents in northeastern Ohio, about just south of Akron. The city overall has a feeling of being past it's prime, but revitalization is slowly taking place. Most of the residents are middle class working families, however both extremes of the spectrum are represented.

Cuyahoga Falls was founded in the mid 1800s. It was originally to be called Manchester, Ohio, but at the request of the postmaster was changed to Cuyahoga Falls, which means Crooked River Falls. In its early days Cuyahoga Falls was home to the upper crust of the area, with many of these original homes still standing. The city has a long standing reputation of bigotry and prejudice due to city ordinances and policies from the past, but this reputation is no longer applicable.

One of the main attractions of Cuyahoga Falls is the parks system. There are several parks throughout the city, most in the middle of residential areas. Many of these parks provide not only playground equipment, but tennis courts, baseball fields, soccer fields, supervised wading pools, picnicing areas and also city run entertainment for the younger set. There is also a city run swimming pool facility, Water Works Family Aquatic Center, which is geared towards young families and children between the ages of 4-10. The aquatic center is outdoors and includes water slides, a lazy river, and a "waterfall" for the kids to play under.

Another draw to the Falls is the riverfront area. The Riverfront Mall is a small distric of unique (mostly antique) shops and restaurants, and is also where the festivals for the city are held. During the summer a concert series known as "Rockin on the River" brings crowds and local bands to the riverfront. The festivals include, the Irish festival, the German festival, the Rib fest, Summer Blues and Cruise, and the Crooked River Arts Fair.

The education system in the falls consists of seven elementary schools, three middle schools, and one highs school(I currently attend Cuyahoga Falls High School). Like myself, most anyone who has any connection to Cuyahoga Falls, and cares about the schools, has a love hate relationship with the community and the local school board. The schools provide a mediocre education for the average student; however, they provide a poor education for the student who wishes to excel. The music program is one of the better parts of the school, and one of the many programs on the school board's hitlist. The students in the music program at the high school are involved in three concert bands, two jazz groups, and a myriad of vocal groups.

Cuyahoga Falls is within 1 hour of Cleveland, 3 of Columbus, and 3 of Pittsburgh. It is a wonderful place to have and raise kids. I hope it continues to be so in the future.