Court: TJ's New Admission Policy Does Not Discriminate

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

But they aren’t offered at every middle school. That’s not kids’ faults. Admissions needs to take that into account.

The non-stop effort to build a better mousetrap is exhausting. Get rid of TJ, which only serves about 4% of FCPS high school students, and focus on all the kids. The TJ AAG and related groups fetishize TJ and ignore the vast majority of students and schools.

There's only one group who is presently trying to build a better mousetrap, and it's the Coalition 4 TJ. If they were to stand down and recognize the futility of their efforts - especially given that School Board elections are coming in the near future - we wouldn't be having these conversations.

GTFOH. In 2020 when Brabrand and the School Board should have been most focused on learning loss, an IT department that was woefully inept, and remediation plans for when kids returned to school, they spent months dithering over different ways to change TJ admissions, none of which would ever matter to the vast majority of FCPS students.

They had to do something about the process because the pandemic made it impossible to run the same process as previously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Asians had cornered the TJ admissions process and started complaining when FCPS attempted to encourage more white and black students. The Asinas claimed this was discrimination against them. The court saw through the BS.

The SB was upset that more Asians were getting in than Blacks and Browns. So, they changed the rules so that the selection would be based on middle school rather than countywide achievement percentages. In other words, some schools can send kids scoring much lower percentages on tests. And, of course, the tests have changed.

The irony is that the SB in times passed changed the process so that more minorities would get in --they just didn't get the minorities they wanted.

Yeah the SB in Fairfax, really cares about Blacks and browns? That’s one of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard.

They changed the process because the White superintendent thought it would improve his standing with members of the School Board, especially those who were either Black or represented magisterial districts with largely Black and Hispanic residents, if FCPS instituted geographic quotas that were intended to reduce the percentage of Asian kids at TJ and increase the percentage of Black and Hispanic kids. And then the other School Board members went along, because they were all from the same political party and didn't want to challenge their colleagues.

If that seems dumb to you, perhaps that's because it was, but it's still what happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

But they aren’t offered at every middle school. That’s not kids’ faults. Admissions needs to take that into account.

The non-stop effort to build a better mousetrap is exhausting. Get rid of TJ, which only serves about 4% of FCPS high school students, and focus on all the kids. The TJ AAG and related groups fetishize TJ and ignore the vast majority of students and schools.

There's only one group who is presently trying to build a better mousetrap, and it's the Coalition 4 TJ. If they were to stand down and recognize the futility of their efforts - especially given that School Board elections are coming in the near future - we wouldn't be having these conversations.

GTFOH. In 2020 when Brabrand and the School Board should have been most focused on learning loss, an IT department that was woefully inept, and remediation plans for when kids returned to school, they spent months dithering over different ways to change TJ admissions, none of which would ever matter to the vast majority of FCPS students.

They had to do something about the process because the pandemic made it impossible to run the same process as previously.

They weren't interested in making a one-time exception due to Covid-related exigencies. They treated the pandemic as an opportunity to make a permanent change at a time when there was no ability for people to attend in-person work sessions or Board meetings to express their dissatisfaction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

But they aren’t offered at every middle school. That’s not kids’ faults. Admissions needs to take that into account.

The non-stop effort to build a better mousetrap is exhausting. Get rid of TJ, which only serves about 4% of FCPS high school students, and focus on all the kids. The TJ AAG and related groups fetishize TJ and ignore the vast majority of students and schools.

There's only one group who is presently trying to build a better mousetrap, and it's the Coalition 4 TJ. If they were to stand down and recognize the futility of their efforts - especially given that School Board elections are coming in the near future - we wouldn't be having these conversations.

GTFOH. In 2020 when Brabrand and the School Board should have been most focused on learning loss, an IT department that was woefully inept, and remediation plans for when kids returned to school, they spent months dithering over different ways to change TJ admissions, none of which would ever matter to the vast majority of FCPS students.

They had to do something about the process because the pandemic made it impossible to run the same process as previously.

They had to change it because of rampant test buying and outright cheating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so glad that the Court dug into Asra’s lame attempt to turn the text messages and emails into “the TJ papers”.

The depths of her bad faith know no bounds. An embarrassment to her family - including, quite publicly, her son - her race, her community, her profession, and the institutions that have employed and continue to employ her.

Sadly, her attempts to burn everything to the ground will have her laughing all the way to the bank, but at what cost?

A district court and one appellate judge on the three-member 4th Circuit panel agreed with the Coalition’s claims. If the case reaches the Supreme Court, the 4th Circuit decision stands a good chance of being reversed. Realistically, everyone involved in this litigation knew there would be multiple appeals.

1) That’s a big, big if. It’s a weak case, full stop. It’s hard to see how the Supreme Court benefits at all from granting cert in this case.

2) The Court already had a shot at this when the Coalition requested that the 4th Circuit’s original stay back at this time last year be vacated. They voted 6-3 not to vacate, leaving the process up and running for the Class of 2026. Not much has changed since then.

Alito, Thomas, Barrett, Gorsuch - that’s enough to grant cert right there.

Barrett wasn’t interested last time.

She tends to vote against emergency cases.

That’s a reach. If this were really a big deal worth litigating, why would she let three classes be selected under an unconstitutional policy?

DP. Are you familiar with how SCOTUS works? There are lots of issues of far greater importance than this where SCOTUS repeatedly rejects cert petitions for years while allowing the issue to percolate before eventually taking it up.

You need to get a grip. It seems unlikely that even the wacky hardcore conservatives that make up today's supreme court would consider a race-blind selection process that selects 60%+ Asians as biased against Asians.

This whole case does seem like some bad joke.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so glad that the Court dug into Asra’s lame attempt to turn the text messages and emails into “the TJ papers”.

The depths of her bad faith know no bounds. An embarrassment to her family - including, quite publicly, her son - her race, her community, her profession, and the institutions that have employed and continue to employ her.

Sadly, her attempts to burn everything to the ground will have her laughing all the way to the bank, but at what cost?

A district court and one appellate judge on the three-member 4th Circuit panel agreed with the Coalition’s claims. If the case reaches the Supreme Court, the 4th Circuit decision stands a good chance of being reversed. Realistically, everyone involved in this litigation knew there would be multiple appeals.

1) That’s a big, big if. It’s a weak case, full stop. It’s hard to see how the Supreme Court benefits at all from granting cert in this case.

2) The Court already had a shot at this when the Coalition requested that the 4th Circuit’s original stay back at this time last year be vacated. They voted 6-3 not to vacate, leaving the process up and running for the Class of 2026. Not much has changed since then.

Much has changed. That was an appeal about a stay, while this is the actual case.

So? The material facts haven’t changed at all. If the new admissions policy is unconstitutional now, it was unconstitutional then as well - and by the time the Court actually opines on the case, there may be three new classes at TJ selected in between: 2026, 2027, and 2028. It’s either a problem
or it isn’t.

Courts tend to take their time on decisions, and a ruling on a stay is considerably different.

A ruling on a stay is a ruling of likelihood of success on the merits.

They were asking for an emergency stay, jumping ahead of the 4th circuit decision.

It's almost as if 90% of commenters saying "this is now settled" because of the emergency stay issue have never read about nor understand anything about the supreme court. It is very normal for the supreme court to let a case work its way through the lower courts before it is willing to touch it. I suppose it's wishful thinking on the part of those who hate asians

You say 'hate Asians' but from what I've seen in admissions the number of Asians hasn't changed or has gone up at our school. Admissions were just offered to some weaker Asian students, some of whom declined, and was denied to some of the stronger Asian students.

The problem is you assume to know who is weaker and stronger, but you don't. You are making assumptions which aren't based on anything. Further your idea of what is strong or weak may not be the same as those making these decisions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Say your school had these things, and the students who are dominating those contests at your school, some winning at state level, were not selected to TJ and instead they gave the spots to kids who couldn't even make it to these teams. That is what is happening at some middle schools with TJ admissions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

Correct, many kids aren’t hardworking or talented on their own and are being propped up by prep courses & parental money. Glad you’ve stated that so clearly.

Strong parents and families produce good children in many measurable categories. Money helps, but usually isnt required. This has been known forever.

Correct. And now, those under-resourced Asian families who have the exact same priorities as those of the kids who used to get into TJ have a fair shot. One of them got an offer in 2024, and 51 of them got an offer in 2025.

Why is that a good thing? They were giving out bonus points based on low income level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

Correct, many kids aren’t hardworking or talented on their own and are being propped up by prep courses & parental money. Glad you’ve stated that so clearly.

Strong parents and families produce good children in many measurable categories. Money helps, but usually isnt required. This has been known forever.

Correct. And now, those under-resourced Asian families who have the exact same priorities as those of the kids who used to get into TJ have a fair shot. One of them got an offer in 2024, and 51 of them got an offer in 2025.

Why is that a good thing? They were giving out bonus points based on low income level.

No, they were giving each middle school equal representation. Sorry, you don’t get rewarded for crowding into the same three schools anymore. Time to branch out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Say your school had these things, and the students who are dominating those contests at your school, some winning at state level, were not selected to TJ and instead they gave the spots to kids who couldn't even make it to these teams. That is what is happening at some middle schools with TJ admissions.

But they don’t. And until every middle school does, it’s not fair to base selection on that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m so glad that the Court dug into Asra’s lame attempt to turn the text messages and emails into “the TJ papers”.

The depths of her bad faith know no bounds. An embarrassment to her family - including, quite publicly, her son - her race, her community, her profession, and the institutions that have employed and continue to employ her.

Sadly, her attempts to burn everything to the ground will have her laughing all the way to the bank, but at what cost?

A district court and one appellate judge on the three-member 4th Circuit panel agreed with the Coalition’s claims. If the case reaches the Supreme Court, the 4th Circuit decision stands a good chance of being reversed. Realistically, everyone involved in this litigation knew there would be multiple appeals.

1) That’s a big, big if. It’s a weak case, full stop. It’s hard to see how the Supreme Court benefits at all from granting cert in this case.

2) The Court already had a shot at this when the Coalition requested that the 4th Circuit’s original stay back at this time last year be vacated. They voted 6-3 not to vacate, leaving the process up and running for the Class of 2026. Not much has changed since then.

Much has changed. That was an appeal about a stay, while this is the actual case.

So? The material facts haven’t changed at all. If the new admissions policy is unconstitutional now, it was unconstitutional then as well - and by the time the Court actually opines on the case, there may be three new classes at TJ selected in between: 2026, 2027, and 2028. It’s either a problem
or it isn’t.

Courts tend to take their time on decisions, and a ruling on a stay is considerably different.

A ruling on a stay is a ruling of likelihood of success on the merits.

They were asking for an emergency stay, jumping ahead of the 4th circuit decision.

It's almost as if 90% of commenters saying "this is now settled" because of the emergency stay issue have never read about nor understand anything about the supreme court. It is very normal for the supreme court to let a case work its way through the lower courts before it is willing to touch it. I suppose it's wishful thinking on the part of those who hate asians

You say 'hate Asians' but from what I've seen in admissions the number of Asians hasn't changed or has gone up at our school. Admissions were just offered to some weaker Asian students, some of whom declined, and was denied to some of the stronger Asian students.

The problem is you assume to know who is weaker and stronger, but you don't. You are making assumptions which aren't based on anything. Further your idea of what is strong or weak may not be the same as those making these decisions.

Obviously it isn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Say your school had these things, and the students who are dominating those contests at your school, some winning at state level, were not selected to TJ and instead they gave the spots to kids who couldn't even make it to these teams. That is what is happening at some middle schools with TJ admissions.

Again. So… the… hell… what?

Many middle school competition teams are “coached” by volunteer parents who, granted, work very hard, but also ensure that their child and frequently their child’s friends are on the team.

Oddly enough, “merit” frequently goes by the wayside in these situations.

There are also plenty of kids at each school who are very bright and just have no interest in academic competitions for whatever reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

Correct, many kids aren’t hardworking or talented on their own and are being propped up by prep courses & parental money. Glad you’ve stated that so clearly.

Strong parents and families produce good children in many measurable categories. Money helps, but usually isnt required. This has been known forever.

Correct. And now, those under-resourced Asian families who have the exact same priorities as those of the kids who used to get into TJ have a fair shot. One of them got an offer in 2024, and 51 of them got an offer in 2025.

Why is that a good thing? They were giving out bonus points based on low income level.

Yes, because fighting through adversity is commendable. I don’t necessarily agree with bonus points for those kids, but I also don’t believe in a points-based rubric for elite school admissions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

But they aren’t offered at every middle school. That’s not kids’ faults. Admissions needs to take that into account.

The non-stop effort to build a better mousetrap is exhausting. Get rid of TJ, which only serves about 4% of FCPS high school students, and focus on all the kids. The TJ AAG and related groups fetishize TJ and ignore the vast majority of students and schools.

There's only one group who is presently trying to build a better mousetrap, and it's the Coalition 4 TJ. If they were to stand down and recognize the futility of their efforts - especially given that School Board elections are coming in the near future - we wouldn't be having these conversations.

GTFOH. In 2020 when Brabrand and the School Board should have been most focused on learning loss, an IT department that was woefully inept, and remediation plans for when kids returned to school, they spent months dithering over different ways to change TJ admissions, none of which would ever matter to the vast majority of FCPS students.

They had to do something about the process because the pandemic made it impossible to run the same process as previously.

They had to change it because of rampant test buying and outright cheating.

*THIS*

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This. There were always kids at the "wrong schools" who didn't have the same parental resources or PTA support who could have thrived at TJ but were not getting in.
Also the idea that all potential is determined by the time a kid is 13 or 14 just seems short sighted and really cruel when it's talked about on these boards. "Oh my God some child got in who was only in Algebra 2 Honors in 8th grade, they're dumbing down the school and all is lost." "Those kids can't handle the pressure and will drop out" "What if the school drops to second best in the country because of them?"
I think the idea that TJ could help a passionate kid who didn't have the same opportunities reach their full potential is much more impressive than missing out on a kid who will have all the opportunities or support at Mclean or Langley.
No policy will make everyone happy or is perfect, but honestly I think these new changes could actually make TJ useful to the County beyond a press release saying they are the number one school in the country or a parent being able to brag at a cocktail party.
Signed a TJ grad from seemingly a saner time

You are talking about kids at a weaker school vs a stronger school like McLean. I am saying they are not doing a good job of selecting students within the same school. It's not even about algebra 2 vs algebra 1, but students who would be on the TJ math team are getting rejected.

be happy they have math team. My kids go to an FCPS middle school that doesn't have math counts, science bowl, quiz bowl, or any other academic competition clubs. The closest we have is math club which is focused on helping kids who are behind. Why should kids be punished because FCPS offers more to some schools than other?

Sounds like something the PTA should probably pursue with the staff there.

Hopefully, you understand that PTAs at the poorest middle schools have no money. Parents at such schools have work schedules that aren’t conducive to volunteering & aren’t culturally tuned into that.

So you want the county to provide for extra curriculars that are generally funded by parents at other schools?

We want the county to disregard benefits provided by public schools not available at all public schools for competitive admissions purposes

I think you want to disassociate parental and familial influence from a student's performance. As indicated, many of these school opportunities are parental and community based, as are prep courses, and enrichment.

Correct, many kids aren’t hardworking or talented on their own and are being propped up by prep courses & parental money. Glad you’ve stated that so clearly.

Strong parents and families produce good children in many measurable categories. Money helps, but usually isnt required. This has been known forever.

Correct. And now, those under-resourced Asian families who have the exact same priorities as those of the kids who used to get into TJ have a fair shot. One of them got an offer in 2024, and 51 of them got an offer in 2025.

Why is that a good thing? They were giving out bonus points based on low income level.

Previously they were giving out bonus points for taking expensive prep classes.