Washington Post Article On Freshmen Admitted Under New Admissions Process

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Only in Fairfax county public schools does studying and practice equate to a negative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

That plus they will have better college admissions being at the top of their base school or higher up at TJ vs what it was like before where very smart kids were not in the top 25% and having college admissions chances messed up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My take is that TJ is a Governor's School with a mission of educating kids whose learning levels are remarkably different than their age level peers. If a kid is rejected from TJ, FCPS is stating that the kid's needs can be met at the base school.

Given that, FCPS is obligated to meet the needs of kids at the base school who have exceeded the base school's offerings. So, they need to provide additional dual enrollment math courses for the kids who take Calculus in 8th-10th grade. They likewise need to provide additional post AP science classes for the kids who complete AP levels and need additional content. If there aren't enough kids at the base school, then FCPS needs to pay for the kids to take equivalent college level classes at GMU.

FCPS can't have it both ways. They can't decide that your kid can have their needs met at the base school, and then refuse to provide advanced enough content at the base school to meet your kid's needs. Granted, the easiest and cheapest solution would be to admit kids like that to TJ, where they honestly belong.

Citation?

Intellectual laziness? I mean, all you have to do is google search VA Governor's schools.

Since you seem to need a lot of handholding, I'll post the second paragraph on the VA Governor's School website.

VA Governor's Schools wrote:The Virginia Governor's School Program has been designed to assist divisions as they meet the needs of a small population of students whose learning levels are remarkably different from their age-level peers. The foundation of the Virginia Governor's School Program centers on best practices in the field of gifted education and the presentation of advanced content to able learners.

Guess you were too lazy to look at TJ’s actual mission:
The mission of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology is to provide students with a challenging learning environment focused on math, science, and technology, to inspire joy at the prospect of discovery, and to foster a culture of innovation based on ethical behavior and the shared interests of humanity.

Every single applicant is advanced. Just not all of them have been groomed by their parents for TJ.

TJ's mission includes the mission of all Governor's Schools, since it is in fact a Governor's School. If FCPS wants to open a non-Governor's school magnet with only the mission above, they can certainly do so. TJ, however, is currently bound by all of the rules and missions for the Governor's Schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

The top 50-100 kids at AAP centers are better than the 1.5% top math kids at several FCPS middle schools but apparently a distorted view of equity is what matters vs actually getting the best STEM kids at a STEM governors school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Only in Fairfax county public schools does studying and practice equate to a negative.

Let me correct this for you, Only in FFX county does buying the test answers equate to studying and practice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

The top 50-100 kids at AAP centers are better than the 1.5% top math kids at several FCPS middle schools but apparently a distorted view of equity is what matters vs actually getting the best STEM kids at a STEM governors school.

Sounds like we need to end this AAP segregation...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

The top 50-100 kids at AAP centers are better than the 1.5% top math kids at several FCPS middle schools but apparently a distorted view of equity is what matters vs actually getting the best STEM kids at a STEM governors school.

Sounds like we need to end this AAP segregation...

And yet you want to maintain TJ? Do tell.

[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: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.

Only in Fairfax county public schools does studying and practice equate to a negative.

Let me correct this for you, Only in FFX county does buying the test answers equate to studying and practice.

that doesn't happen but keep blasting those smarter than you

[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: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.

Only in Fairfax county public schools does studying and practice equate to a negative.

Let me correct this for you, Only in FFX county does buying the test answers equate to studying and practice.

guess if you lose argument, you just lie. Trump style.

[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: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.

Only in Fairfax county public schools does studying and practice equate to a negative.

Let me correct this for you, Only in FFX county does buying the test answers equate to studying and practice.

guess if you lose argument, you just lie. Trump style.

Are you denying that kids shared the specific test questions with test prep centers?

[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: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.

Only in Fairfax county public schools does studying and practice equate to a negative.

Let me correct this for you, Only in FFX county does buying the test answers equate to studying and practice.

guess if you lose argument, you just lie. Trump style.

Are you denying that kids shared the specific test questions with test prep centers?

No of course not; that was well documented here. Many even claimed to have seen the questions prior to the test. I guess the kids didn't honor the non-disclosure. I just wonder if these centers gave them kickbacks for this or something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

The top 50-100 kids at AAP centers are better than the 1.5% top math kids at several FCPS middle schools but apparently a distorted view of equity is what matters vs actually getting the best STEM kids at a STEM governors school.

Sounds like we need to end this AAP segregation...

I actually agree with you. There are kids not being identified from the lower 50% of Fairfax County who are actual geniuses and there are kids in AAP from the upper 50% who are just simply smart and are only there because of prepping/appeals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

Why would you think that? The process is not designed to ensure that top math kids get admitted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think we need to hear the other side. What is the experience for those kids who were the top math kid in their class, unlike the girl in the first profile who says she as not good math? What happened to those kids and how are they doing now?

Probably the same as they’ve always done?

What do you mean by that? Same as they have always done would mean they would be at TJ under the old admissions standards.

Unless the top math kid at a middle school can’t write an essay then they are at TJ.

Why would you think that? The process is not designed to ensure that top math kids get admitted.

Only the top kids who have exceptional essays and portraits - which include math. It’s just not the *only* thing they are looking for.