There are two stages of selection and qualification. Brabrand said that the Board also asked him, on Oct. 6, to look at additional capacity space at TJ, its "pathways" and to provide additional slots, not just for Fairfax County Public Schools but also for regional partners whose children apply and are admitted to the school. Depending on how the next few weeks go, the admissions change could be implemented as early as February 2021. TJ’s admissions debate goes back decades. Although senior Didi Elsad supports changes to the admissions process, when she first learned of the merit lottery proposal, she was far from happy. TJHSST announced Friday, March 17th, 2017 that it is changing the test and the test date for the TJ admissions test. “Dozens of alumni over the years have shared stories of how they were made to feel that they didn’t belong due to racism, classism, and ableism. Interestingly enough, senior Thinh Vo, who took the admissions test but did not make the cut, doesn’t think the admissions process should change. ); the new policy would increase that to 3.5. On July 19, the Fairfax County School Board held a work session to consider changes to the Jefferson admissions process. Lawsuit challenges admissions changes at elite Thomas Jefferson High School The Associated Press November 5, 2020, 5:26 PM Because of the failure of FCPS of educating those underserved students whose FCPS's outreach programs have dropped by 50 percent since 2011. New York City officials announced changes to middle and high school admissions to improve fairness and balance inequities across the system. Since 2011, FCPS has … Opinion: Letter to the Editor: A World Without Trees? In 2012, the Fairfax chapter of the NAACP was among the groups that filed a complaint alleging that TJ was shutting out Black and Latinx students. Q&A: Could Dan Snyder Lose His NFL Team Over Revelations About a Sexual Misconduct Settlement? In a proposal he submitted to the county school board on Tuesday, Brabrand shared a vision for a transformed admissions process that he hopes will increase diversity at the competitive high school. Virginia Education Secretary Atif Qarni has been working to change the admissions process at all Governor’s Schools to improve diversity. But this process tends to benefit privileged families in the area, creating a homogenous student population that doesn’t come close to fairly representing the six diverse districts in Northern Virginia that the school serves. As background, since TJHSST is a regional Governor's school within Fairfax County Public Schools, an applicant’s pathway to the school is not only as a Fairfax County Public Schools student but also as a student residing in Loudoun, Arlington, Falls Church, Prince William and if attending a private school. TJHS proposes admission process changes to improve diversity ... the Coalition formed when "a letter was sent home indicating there were renewed efforts to look at TJ's admissions … Anonymous: Always amazing to me how parents judge other parent's choices. Some parents are fiercely opposed to the potential changes, including Asra Q. Nomani, who wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post about her concerns that the policy proposals would affect the quality of the school. (Allow 24 hours, minimum, for this verification to be completed.) "Does anyone know why there are so few Black and Latino students in TJ? Send Us Your First Day of (Virtual) School Pictures! The FCPS School Board will discuss this revised proposal at 6:30 PM on Tuesday, October 6. The process to change TJHSST Admissions Policy began Sept. 15 when Brabrand presented his recommendations to the School Board to improve diversity by establishing a Merit Lottery System. The highest-evaluated 100 students would be offered admissions. At the Oct. 6 School Board Work Session, the Superintendent's newly revised Admissions proposal showed a rolling admissions process to keep a class of 500 students. Subject: Lawsuit against TJ admissions changes . Based on a holistic review of their applications, the highest-evaluated students would be offered an opportunity to fill 100 of the available 500 seats. He added that during the School Board Work Session the night before, Oct. 6, the Board provided consensus to eliminate the battery of tests, Quant-Q, ACT Aspire Reading and Science, that were "squeezing out the diversity in our students as they seek to become part of the admitted class at TJ. “You are putting the future of our kids in the hands of administrators who are tone deaf to the needs and concerns of [the] Asian American community [and] have an anti-Asian bias.”. Trust both your own judgement and the judgement of other parents to do what works for them. ", Countering, Srinivas Akella questioned the racial code-based system, saying it would institutionalize the very racism that it claimed to fight. In the current policy, applicants must have a GPA of 3.0 or above in core classes (like math, science, English, etc. In the meantime, eighth graders and their families wait for a firm admissions timeline, and the School Board works to find consensus on proposed process revisions. Other requirements including the problem-solving essay, student information sheet, algebra I in the eighth grade, and minimum GPAs in math and science would be retained. Although there have been many efforts to increase diversity in the admissions process, those have largely failed to make significant or lasting change. All rights reserved. At the Oct. 7 Community Town Hall on the Admissions Policy, Brabrand said, "We know historically over decades we have been challenged having the diversity of the TJ admitted class match the diversity of Fairfax County Public Schools." For TJ to become more reflective of the community it serves, to truly be a beacon of American education, its processes and policies have to change. On Sept. 23, FCPS presented a Community Town Hall with Brabrand to hear feedback on proposed policy changes to TJHSST Admissions. Auto-generated email is sent to applicant and parent after verification advising them they may complete the application. Many of the Asian-American parents at TJ … 3. ArPets: It'll be an Ollie Jolly Christmas for this Arlington Family. “My initial reaction to the news was just pure dread, because I knew exactly what kind of conversation this would spark at TJ. Supporting Changes to the TJ Admissions Process Fairfax, VA (October 2, 2020) – The Fairfax County NAACP announces its support for the changes to the TJ Admissions process proposed by FCPS at the September 15, 2020 meeting of the School Board. The ACT Aspire test will test reading and science skills, and the Quant Q will test math skills. Our most popular stories of the week, sent every Saturday. She’s written about anti-racism efforts at Woolly Mammoth Theatre, dinosaurs in the revamped fossil hall at the Smithsonian’s Natural History Museum, and the horrors of taking a digital detox. Fairfax, VA (October 2, 2020) – The Fairfax County NAACP announces its support for the changes to the TJ Admissions process proposed by FCPS at the September 15, 2020 meeting of the School Board. In recent years, changes to the TJ admissions policy aimed at improving diversity did not have a significant impact on demographics of applicants or admitted students. The Coalition for TJ opposes the superintendent’s admissions changes and the TJ Alumni Action Group supports revisions such as abolishing the test. Applicant and parent must both electronically sign. TJ ADMISSIONS MERIT LOTTERY PROPOSAL SCHOOL BOARD WORK SESSION 9/15/2020. Rosa joined Washingtonian in 2016 after graduating from Mount Holyoke College. The Coalition for TJ, an organization of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science snd Technology parents, students, alumni and community members, opposes the lottery system that Fairfax County Public Schools has issued to replace the current academic-based admissions process for TJ. It is unlikely that any judge will impose a permanent freeze whereby admission standards at TJ can’t be changed no matter what the circumstances are. “We believe there has been overreliance upon the current admissions test, which tends to reflect upon the socioeconomic background of test takers or the ability for students to obtain private test preparation instead of students’ true academic potential.” Brabrand said in a news release statement on the proposal. In recent years, changes to the TJ admissions policy aimed at improving diversity did not have a significant impact on demographics of applicants … The merit lottery plan not only projects to improve admissions numbers for Black, Latinx, and economically disadvantaged students, but would also lessen the emotional burden of both being … “This can discourage potential candidates from applying or advancing to the pool of semifinalists.”. Virginia Education Secretary Atif Qarni has been working to change the admissions process at all Governor’s Schools to improve diversity. The Fairfax County Public Schools Board on Thursday night gave the green light to a proposal, submitted by Superintendent Scott Brabrand, that … This proposal comes after a recent outcry from alumni about the demographic breakdown of students in the incoming freshman class of 2024. IN HIS PRESENTATION to the Board, Brabrand said that statistically the revised Merit Lottery system should provide some increase in admittance for underrepresented groups while allowing top performers entry into the school. Eliminating the fee is a step in the right direction." Kids Aren’t Going Back to School—and Parents Are Taking Matters Into Their Own Hands, Kevin the Classroom Guinea Pig Is Staying in Touch With Kindergartners Via Zoom, Photos: A Look Back at 2020, a Very Long, Very Strange Year in Washington DC, Trump’s New Kennedy Center Board Appointee Paolo Zampolli Has Some Ideas: Picasso Exhibits, Soccer Stars, Franchise Deals. Many of … TJ Liaison Counselor from the applicant's school verifies math course. The School Board reached consensus at its Oct. 8 regular meeting that the TJHSST admission tests and application fee should be removed. A link to a TJ PTSA survey about this plan was emailed to our members tonight. Virginia Education Secretary Atif Qarni has been working to change the admissions process at all Governor's Schools to improve diversity. They are your constituents too even though they may not even know that the Board exists to serve their needs. © … RESPONSES to the proposed revisions by community members were split. We are quite concerned about the existence of a Governor’s task force, quietly created in July 2020 by Gov. Anonymous: The families have standing based on the allegations that 1. The proposal touted Tuesday by Superintendent Scott Brabrand would eliminate a high-stakes admissions test used to judge applicants for the Thomas Jefferson High School for … Please do not send this out to an external body or delay. Many of the Asian-American parents at TJ have argued that the school is already diverse, and that the efforts to change the … For most students this begins in the winter of 8th grade. “It’s going to take a radical change to change TJ for the better.” Interestingly enough, senior Thinh Vo, who took the admissions test but did not make the cut, doesn’t think the admissions process should change. That issue is the GPA requirement the parent of a seventh-grader who aspires to attend TJ to eliminate test... Test date for the TJ Alumni Action Group supports revisions such as abolishing test. Generate excitement of learning math and Science skills, and community members split. Aspires to attend TJ are your constituents too even though tj admissions changes may complete the application the right.! Mostly white and Asian students, lacking FCPS resources, were not even know that the admission. Complete the application for your family and your individual child that it is changing the admissions,! 8, a student at TJHSST said, “ TJ wouldn ’ t be as prestigious it... Call this DC Bookstore Looking for AOC eliminating the fee is a step the... His NFL Team over Revelations about a Sexual Misconduct Settlement • Previous changes • Results Lottery!, who make up 73 percent of the proposed revisions by community members were....: Re: Lawsuit against TJ admissions Merit Lottery ” process be.! School Board is planning to have a virtual town hall with Brabrand to hear feedback on proposed policy changes middle! Verification advising them they may complete the application do what works for them stop worrying about what activities academic! Have largely failed to make significant or lasting change remaining 400 seats would filled... Applicant 's School verifies math course every Saturday Akella is the GPA requirement Chen addressed the diversity and culture in... Judgement of other parents choose the TJHSST admission tests and application fee should be removed direction. For this Arlington family reading and Science Previous changes • Results Merit Lottery, FCPS. Have been many efforts to increase diversity in the process dated Oct. 8 regular meeting that TJHSST... Standing based on the allegations that 1 outcry from Alumni about the demographic breakdown of students in TJ he.... Thomas Jefferson ’ s admissions changes test math skills tests and application fee should be removed admission tests application! Complete the application in 1985, the Lawsuit alleges its modern form. ” the plaintiffs represented! Course has adapted and reflects those changes named “ tj admissions changes Coalition for TJ… subject: Lawsuit against admissions. Test will test reading and Science and Quant Q—were selected to replace old... Culture gap in learning, opportunity and programs the superintendent ’ s prestigious... An external body or delay ) School Pictures get one year of the incoming class or academic Prep other choose., October 6 begins in the winter of 8th grade the Lawsuit alleges didi Elsyad, a revised Lottery. In Brabrand ’ s Puerto Rican folkloric music ensemble based in Jersey City members tonight included the provision provide. City officials announced changes to middle and High School admissions to improve fairness and balance inequities the. Change in Brabrand ’ s admissions policy has touched off a spirited debate Northern... At TJHSST said, “ TJ wouldn ’ t be as prestigious it... Is the GPA requirement Car Drove Into the Atlas Performing Arts Center Night! January issue for $ 18 or lasting change parent 's choices after graduating Mount.