Washington Post Article On Freshmen Admitted Under New Admissions Process

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is more difficult because there are more kids who are interested and applying from those schools.

There are more kids applying because school is emphasized by the parents for a variety of reasons. There are more kids in honors/AAP because the parents are more involved for a variety of reasons.

There are more kids from the feeder schools even with the new distribution method for that reason.

You are bemoaning giving up a spot to kids who traditionally have not had that same opportunity. I get it, we all want the best for our kids but your child still has a greater chance of being accepted then kids from a non traditional feeder school.

Exactly.

It’s not surprising that the number of applicants increased last year when a new process was unveiled for a selective school. The number of applications declined this year and may continue to decline in the future as TJ’s brand becomes harder to define or understand.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Congrats to these kids. There are always good kids who don't make it. Question was never about minorities in the school. It was about purging one minority for the other to assuage guilt for the majority while also helping the majority. There were better ways of doing it without cruelly targeting just one group, with intent. which is why the court said the new process was not legal.

Good is not the best. It's a magnet school not a diversity inclusive job

Under the SB’s new “scoring rubric” (which they kept confidential/ hidden from parents),

-1/4 of TJ admissions is based on actual math talent. 1/4 is based on GPA and 50% of the application is based on non academic criteria.

GPA doesn't count towards math talent?

Not really. An A in M7H earns a higher score in the TJ evaluations than an A- in Algebra II, since there is no extra weighting based on the difficulty of the class.

Algebra I in 8th is too low of a cut off.

The cut off should be geometry in 8th, not algebra I.

TJ should serve the kids whose needs cannot be met elsewhere, particularly in math and science.

A kid who takes algebra I in 8th is just on the average track. Most of the smart kids take algebra in 7th, and the average to slightly above average take it in 8th.

Do any kids applying to TJ get less than an A in any math class? I assumed they all got As in math/science.

It should be Algebra 1 in 7th grade

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

Of course it was politically driven. Its main proponent was Scott Brabrand, who specifically said he was moved to act by George Floyd’s murder. It wasn’t

You either have a selective or a narrow view of what is political, or you lie on purpose.

That’s not a “political” motivation - it wasn’t to garner votes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

You can spin it whichever way. Keys-Gamarra is in record telling Braband that he needs to do something in light of the George Floyd tragedy. Whether the C4TJ case goes anywhere or not, at lease the discovery process has exposed the politicians for what they are.

Addressing injustices <> political

Hypersensationalizing and mischaracterizing actions to address injustices in order to fearmonger and garner votes = political

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

Of course it was politically driven. Its main proponent was Scott Brabrand, who specifically said he was moved to act by George Floyd’s murder. It wasn’t

You either have a selective or a narrow view of what is political, or you lie on purpose.

That’s not a “political” motivation - it wasn’t to garner votes.

Sure. I have a bridge to sell to you. London Bridge, no less.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

Of course it was politically driven. Its main proponent was Scott Brabrand, who specifically said he was moved to act by George Floyd’s murder. It wasn’t

You either have a selective or a narrow view of what is political, or you lie on purpose.

That’s not a “political” motivation - it wasn’t to garner votes.

Sure. I have a bridge to sell to you. London Bridge, no less.

Braband was trying to garner which votes exactly?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They’ll be fine but it’s really unfair for them.

Why is it unfair? They applied, they did not get in. Someone else's application was deemed more merit worthy. You may not agree with the way admission was determined, but that doesn't make it"unfair."

If you are this up in arms about TJ, just wait until college, when it really is like a lottery at top schools. Honestly, if your kid is that spectacular, they will be top of the class at the base school and have an even better chance at a top college. For your kid's sake, move on.

Colleges are not funded by my tax dollars. TJ is. As a resident of McLean, I pay pay my fair share of taxes (and property taxes per capita are likely the highest where I live).

You want to penalize privilege - go ahead. Make it twice as difficult or thrice as difficult for privileged kids to get in. The admissions formula makes it almost impossible for non-experience factor kids to get in from the feeder schools.

Helping the underprivileged is one thing but class warfare that penalizes young kids is totally different.

This is not about arguing with partisan Ninjas like you on an anonymous board. This will be settled next November. And hopefully for good.

What a disgusting display of entitlement.

Just because McLean has more wealthy families than other areas doesn’t mean it “deserves” more seats.

We all pay taxes to fund this community resource and this resource should be available to the whole community. Not just a privileged few.

What is equally disgusting is the gerrymandering of community resources by the electorally privileged few.

Nobody is asking for more than a fair share of resource.

I bat for my family and not for McLean. It does not matter to me if McLean has 30 or 100 seats. What matters to me is that my kid has a near 0 shot at TJ because of the way the admissions formula is set up. I recognize my privilege and I fully understand that you need to adjust the formula to get more of the underprivileged admitted. But the formula makes it near impossible for a non- experience factor kid from Cooper/Longfellow to get in. And that is absolutely about fairness and equity. Before we are Black or White or Asian or McLean residents or from south County, we are individuals. And this entire process has done wrong to many at an individual level.

So you guys can throw whatever shade you want.

We're considering moving to improve our chances, any idea which MS have the best odds now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

You can spin it whichever way. Keys-Gamarra is in record telling Braband that he needs to do something in light of the George Floyd tragedy. Whether the C4TJ case goes anywhere or not, at lease the discovery process has exposed the politicians for what they are.

Addressing injustices <> political

Hypersensationalizing and mischaracterizing actions to address injustices in order to fearmonger and garner votes = political

Merit-based admissions were an injustice?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is more difficult because there are more kids who are interested and applying from those schools.

There are more kids applying because school is emphasized by the parents for a variety of reasons. There are more kids in honors/AAP because the parents are more involved for a variety of reasons.

There are more kids from the feeder schools even with the new distribution method for that reason.

You are bemoaning giving up a spot to kids who traditionally have not had that same opportunity. I get it, we all want the best for our kids but your child still has a greater chance of being accepted then kids from a non traditional feeder school.

Exactly.

It’s not surprising that the number of applicants increased last year when a new process was unveiled for a selective school. The number of applications declined this year and may continue to decline in the future as TJ’s brand becomes harder to define or understand.

It's on its way to being a school for its local community, as frankly it should be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

You can spin it whichever way. Keys-Gamarra is in record telling Braband that he needs to do something in light of the George Floyd tragedy. Whether the C4TJ case goes anywhere or not, at lease the discovery process has exposed the politicians for what they are.

Addressing injustices <> political

Hypersensationalizing and mischaracterizing actions to address injustices in order to fearmonger and garner votes = political

Merit-based admissions were an injustice?

Rather than asking one-line smarta$$ questions, you can read this thread and be rid of your ignorance

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/show/60.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

Of course it was politically driven. Its main proponent was Scott Brabrand, who specifically said he was moved to act by George Floyd’s murder. It wasn’t

You either have a selective or a narrow view of what is political, or you lie on purpose.

That’s not a “political” motivation - it wasn’t to garner votes.

It was to try and improve Brabrand’s standing with the far-left School Board, which is the most transparently political (and unconcerned with actual education) of any School Board in recent memory.

That was also a political move, but it failed and Brabrand was only given a one-year contract extension, which is soon to expire.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is more difficult because there are more kids who are interested and applying from those schools.

There are more kids applying because school is emphasized by the parents for a variety of reasons. There are more kids in honors/AAP because the parents are more involved for a variety of reasons.

There are more kids from the feeder schools even with the new distribution method for that reason.

You are bemoaning giving up a spot to kids who traditionally have not had that same opportunity. I get it, we all want the best for our kids but your child still has a greater chance of being accepted then kids from a non traditional feeder school.

Exactly.

It’s not surprising that the number of applicants increased last year when a new process was unveiled for a selective school. The number of applications declined this year and may continue to decline in the future as TJ’s brand becomes harder to define or understand.

It's on its way to being a school for its local community, as frankly it should be.

That would have been more honest and efficient, but it wouldn't allow the School Board members the opportunity to claim TJ is still the school for the "best and the brightest" for a few more years until that obviously is no longer the case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No process will be universally popular but this one has absolutely divided the community. But that is the nature of the current political game.

I agree that we should push for a better admissions process, but this process is at least a step in the right direction.

And the admissions change was *not* politically driven. The Rs have politicized it.

You can spin it whichever way. Keys-Gamarra is in record telling Braband that he needs to do something in light of the George Floyd tragedy. Whether the C4TJ case goes anywhere or not, at lease the discovery process has exposed the politicians for what they are.

Addressing injustices <> political

Hypersensationalizing and mischaracterizing actions to address injustices in order to fearmonger and garner votes = political

Merit-based admissions were an injustice?

Rather than asking one-line smarta$$ questions, you can read this thread and be rid of your ignorance

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/show/60.page

More specifically here

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1028206.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They’ll be fine but it’s really unfair for them.

Why is it unfair? They applied, they did not get in. Someone else's application was deemed more merit worthy. You may not agree with the way admission was determined, but that doesn't make it"unfair."

If you are this up in arms about TJ, just wait until college, when it really is like a lottery at top schools. Honestly, if your kid is that spectacular, they will be top of the class at the base school and have an even better chance at a top college. For your kid's sake, move on.

Colleges are not funded by my tax dollars. TJ is. As a resident of McLean, I pay pay my fair share of taxes (and property taxes per capita are likely the highest where I live).

You want to penalize privilege - go ahead. Make it twice as difficult or thrice as difficult for privileged kids to get in. The admissions formula makes it almost impossible for non-experience factor kids to get in from the feeder schools.

Helping the underprivileged is one thing but class warfare that penalizes young kids is totally different.

This is not about arguing with partisan Ninjas like you on an anonymous board. This will be settled next November. And hopefully for good.

What a disgusting display of entitlement.

Just because McLean has more wealthy families than other areas doesn’t mean it “deserves” more seats.

We all pay taxes to fund this community resource and this resource should be available to the whole community. Not just a privileged few.

What is equally disgusting is the gerrymandering of community resources by the electorally privileged few.

Nobody is asking for more than a fair share of resource.

I bat for my family and not for McLean. It does not matter to me if McLean has 30 or 100 seats. What matters to me is that my kid has a near 0 shot at TJ because of the way the admissions formula is set up. I recognize my privilege and I fully understand that you need to adjust the formula to get more of the underprivileged admitted. But the formula makes it near impossible for a non- experience factor kid from Cooper/Longfellow to get in. And that is absolutely about fairness and equity. Before we are Black or White or Asian or McLean residents or from south County, we are individuals. And this entire process has done wrong to many at an individual level.

So you guys can throw whatever shade you want.

I won’t throw shade, but your kid may have a better experience at Langley or McLean than most of these kids are going to have at TJ in the future. They will be surrounded by highly motivated peers, the course offerings may expand as more STEM-focused kids from Cooper and Longfellow remain at their base schools, and you’ll avoid the in-fighting among parents, School Board members, and community residents over who “belongs” at their school. Many people would love to be in your shoes.

Bingo, now that they are taking less folks from the AAP feeders aka the most qualified and advanced STEM students, the base schools for the AAP feeders are better than the raw talent now going to TJ from across the county via the new equity process.

DP. I don't mind that they're taking fewer kids from the traditional AAP feeders. 50 kids from Carson is plenty. My issue is that their application process doesn't have enough information to find the top 50 Carson kids. Instead, they're offering spots to very privileged, mediocre kids while bypassing the kids who are exceptionally talented. Within Carson or Longfellow, math level absolutely should matter. STEM achievements also should matter. The kid with a 4.0 taking Algebra I and with no STEM ECs or no notable achievements shouldn't be ranked higher than the 4.0 kid in Pre-Calc who qualified for AIME and had a high national ranking in Science Olympiad.

Presumably, the “more qualified” kid would score better on the essay and portrait.

Why? Being elite at STEM and being a strong writer are two not necessarily correlated things. Also, it's not like the prep centers aren't teaching the kids how to write compelling essays. Kids who have practiced or been coached in writing these types of essays are at a big advantage over those who haven't had the training.

[Anonymous]

It's so obvious the obsession over which kids might have some "advantage" when it comes to TJ can only end with the school's dissolution and return to use as a purely neighborhood school.

Just get on with it, you twits.