What is going on with TJ admissions this year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Are you seriously going to say there was no push to get more URMs?

There's a difference between "a push to get more students from underrepresented groups" and "extra weight if you are one". The former, yes, the latter, no.

The whole point of the portrait sheet and to a lesser extent the writing sample was to do this. Additionally there were actual bonus points for URM and FARMS folks.

There weren't ever any bonus points for URMs for TJ admissions. There were originally bonus points for attending an underrepresented middle school, but those points were eliminated. That being said, I have no doubt that the decision to allocate seats by attending school rather than by zoned school/high school/pyramid was made entirely to decrease the number of Asians.

Really? Then how come it's 60%+ Asians even now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

The test isn't there. This answer is not helpful for this years thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Are you seriously going to say there was no push to get more URMs?

There's a difference between "a push to get more students from underrepresented groups" and "extra weight if you are one". The former, yes, the latter, no.

The whole point of the portrait sheet and to a lesser extent the writing sample was to do this. Additionally there were actual bonus points for URM and FARMS folks.

There weren't ever any bonus points for URMs for TJ admissions. There were originally bonus points for attending an underrepresented middle school, but those points were eliminated. That being said, I have no doubt that the decision to allocate seats by attending school rather than by zoned school/high school/pyramid was made entirely to decrease the number of Asians.

Really? Then how come it's 60%+ Asians even now?

Yep, 60% even after that. Maybe they are both talented and work hard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

False, although this is the most likely scenario if the Coalition for TJ ends up winning the court case when it's all said and done.

Been saying for some time that the Coalition should drop the suit if they want their kids to have any kind of shot at a system that is remotely merit-based - which this system is moreso than a lottery would be.

A small issue will get in the way of a lottery system - VA statute regarding VA Governor's Schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Are you seriously going to say there was no push to get more URMs?

There's a difference between "a push to get more students from underrepresented groups" and "extra weight if you are one". The former, yes, the latter, no.

The whole point of the portrait sheet and to a lesser extent the writing sample was to do this. Additionally there were actual bonus points for URM and FARMS folks.

Wasn’t that what the courts deemed illegal before fcps appealed?

The lawsuit lost on appeal no changes were made

The only thing I have to go on is a link to the sheet that was an exhibit from the lawsuit

I don't think anyone really knows what rubric was finally used.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

The test isn't there. This answer is not helpful for this years thread.

It seems on point since PP was claiming the "top kids" based on some test to which people were buying access.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

The test isn't there. This answer is not helpful for this years thread.

It seems on point since PP was claiming the "top kids" based on some test to which people were buying access.

No it is not because there is no test for TJ. The discussion is TJ admissions for this year. You have an axe to grind and are stuck on one particular note. Raising the test BS in a topic that doesn't include a test is non-sensical.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

Based on all of TJ's academic successes, they were spot on in identifying the top 100-200 kids in FCPS. Thanks to prep centers and UMC privilege, they struggled at identifying the correct kids to round out the bottom half of TJ. Now, they can't tell the difference between the top kids, the less privileged kids who still deserve TJ spots, and the prep kids, especially when the admissions score is largely based on unproctored essays. They could have attempted to fix the issues with the Quant-Q or other factors without completely gutting the process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

Based on all of TJ's academic successes, they were spot on in identifying the top 100-200 kids in FCPS. Thanks to prep centers and UMC privilege, they struggled at identifying the correct kids to round out the bottom half of TJ. Now, they can't tell the difference between the top kids, the less privileged kids who still deserve TJ spots, and the prep kids, especially when the admissions score is largely based on unproctored essays. They could have attempted to fix the issues with the Quant-Q or other factors without completely gutting the process.

High-stakes testing is probably not the best answer. Maybe a more holistic process that considers things like grades, extracurriculars and teacher input where each middle school is allotted seats proportional to its percentage of the population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Early this year? It's already August. Do you mean early next year? Or late this year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Are you seriously going to say there was no push to get more URMs?

There's a difference between "a push to get more students from underrepresented groups" and "extra weight if you are one". The former, yes, the latter, no.

The whole point of the portrait sheet and to a lesser extent the writing sample was to do this. Additionally there were actual bonus points for URM and FARMS folks.

There weren't ever any bonus points for URMs for TJ admissions. There were originally bonus points for attending an underrepresented middle school, but those points were eliminated. That being said, I have no doubt that the decision to allocate seats by attending school rather than by zoned school/high school/pyramid was made entirely to decrease the number of Asians.

Really? Then how come it's 60%+ Asians even now?

Yep, 60% even after that. Maybe they are both talented and work hard.

Perhaps, but with that high a number I'd also suspect the test is culturally biased.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Are you seriously going to say there was no push to get more URMs?

There's a difference between "a push to get more students from underrepresented groups" and "extra weight if you are one". The former, yes, the latter, no.

The whole point of the portrait sheet and to a lesser extent the writing sample was to do this. Additionally there were actual bonus points for URM and FARMS folks.

There weren't ever any bonus points for URMs for TJ admissions. There were originally bonus points for attending an underrepresented middle school, but those points were eliminated. That being said, I have no doubt that the decision to allocate seats by attending school rather than by zoned school/high school/pyramid was made entirely to decrease the number of Asians.

Really? Then how come it's 60%+ Asians even now?

Yep, 60% even after that. Maybe they are both talented and work hard.

Perhaps, but with that high a number I'd also suspect the test is culturally biased.

No. The test is not culturally biased. It is a math test. The only possible bias is that Asian families are more likely to put their kids in math enrichment then non-Asian families. We see this in my white sons RSM class. It is easily 2/3 Asian. My Asian friend jokes that he is doing a bad job representing Asians because his eldest isn’t taking Algebra until 8th grade and his middle child is not great at math. All three of his kids have been doing Kumon since they were in K.

It is not exactly news that many Asian families, and this includes Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Singapore, Taiwanese and the like value education and work hard to provide enrichment opportunities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

I heard they were switching to a lottery to end all the bellyaching.

Back to the original bad idea. Guess this is what fcps always wanted.

I don’t understand why the top students just can attend the top high school in the country.

I am actually fine with affirmation action. Allocate 10% to URMs but keep the other 90% competitive.

The problem is they never figured out who the top students were in the first place. They were simply allowing people to get in by buying the test.

#fakenews

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an eighth grader considering TJ. I was following TJ admissions last year but then lost track after appeals.

Is FCPS still doing the top kids from each middle school?
Will there still be extra weight on if you are free lunch or URM?
Will there be a test this year and when?

Yes to top kids from each middle school
Yes to students from economically disadvantaged families
No to racial groups - this has never been the case
No to a content oriented exam, but yes to a student portrait sheet

All of this subject to change based on court decisions coming up early this year.

Are you seriously going to say there was no push to get more URMs?

There's a difference between "a push to get more students from underrepresented groups" and "extra weight if you are one". The former, yes, the latter, no.

The whole point of the portrait sheet and to a lesser extent the writing sample was to do this. Additionally there were actual bonus points for URM and FARMS folks.

Wasn’t that what the courts deemed illegal before fcps appealed?

The lawsuit lost on appeal no changes were made

The only thing I have to go on is a link to the sheet that was an exhibit from the lawsuit

I don't think anyone really knows what rubric was finally used.

The appeal is still pending. It will get argued on Sept. 16 and decided months later. One thing to keep in mind is that the Virginia Attorney General filed a brief and will be presenting an argument in favor of the lower court decision and the equal protection claim raised by Coalition for TJ.