New TJ principal announced

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The new principals main goal is to improve diversity with unrepresented groups, and encourage critical thinking. It is also very unlikely that he will bring the admission test along with some other application processes back, because the FCPS board refuses to listen to this controversy with TJ. Also, the new process is heavily weighted on the 1 question essay test. So, TJ is still choosing top students, just in a different way than standardized testing. They want to choose students who show creative and critical thinking. And that is completely acceptable.

There are kids at TJ that got that question wrong.

I heard the tip, it is better to answer wrong with correct explanation, other than correct answer but wrong explanation.

PP. The kid I know decided there were 100 minutes in an hour for some reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former classmate of accomplished VA politician Hung Cao.

Cautiously optimistic about this new TJ principal.

“Accomplished VA politician”

As long as you don’t count actually winning elections. Attending TJ was Cao’s greatest accomplishment.

Really?
Retired US Navy Captain.
Naval Academy grad and served with Special Operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia.
He also received his Master’s degree in physics from the Naval Postgraduate School, and fellowships at MIT and Harvard.

I don't think he ever had much of a chance at beating Kaine but I thought he did well in the debate and I thought he did better than he should have in the Virginia election against a relatively popular incumbent.

I agree and he clearly has an impressive record.

It is really saddening to repeatedly encounter a few people on DCUM who harbor so much open hatred and hostility toward TJ students, past and present. To those people: what is your problem and why are you even on these threads?

I mean, I am the parent of a current TJ student; can you say the same?

PP here.
I have been a TJ parent and I have a nephew there now.
I'm conflicted a bit.
I know it's not fair to the kids that didn't get in under the new policy but my nephew is thriving in part because the competition is so much lower but the rigor is still there.
He gets to be on a team.
He gets to be in a lot of clubs that he would not join if he had to worry more about getting good grades.
There was not this much leisure of mind when my kids went there

Are you saying your nephew is getting good grades because competition is now lower? Is TJ doing grades on bell curve? Or are you saying something else? Just trying to follow along here and was confused what you were saying.

There has always been grade curves. The curves started to get more robust in the last few years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:TJ teachers and students are happy. That's what matters.

So you have turned something that was an opportunity into a prize.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If a kid has the wrong explanation and a wrong essay but it corresponds with the wrong answer, would that count? (This is a dumb question but I personally know 2-3 kids who did that and got in) just curious.

My kid never told me what was the questions and what was his answer was. I asked and he said he signed something on the paper that said he is not allowed to share/discuss any test material.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If a kid has the wrong explanation and a wrong essay but it corresponds with the wrong answer, would that count? (This is a dumb question but I personally know 2-3 kids who did that and got in) just curious.

My kid never told me what was the questions and what was his answer was. I asked and he said he signed something on the paper that said he is not allowed to share/discuss any test material.

All the old essay prompts are on the internet though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If a kid has the wrong explanation and a wrong essay but it corresponds with the wrong answer, would that count? (This is a dumb question but I personally know 2-3 kids who did that and got in) just curious.

My kid never told me what was the questions and what was his answer was. I asked and he said he signed something on the paper that said he is not allowed to share/discuss any test material.

DS also will not disclose the question, and signing the non-disclosure statement is consistent.

He did say the question was “confusing” at first, or poorly worded. Once he realized what was being asked, he said it was easy for him. He also said he could see how many of his classmates could have gotten it wrong. One girl he knows did not manage to finish the Q (she remains at the base school).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If a kid has the wrong explanation and a wrong essay but it corresponds with the wrong answer, would that count? (This is a dumb question but I personally know 2-3 kids who did that and got in) just curious.

My kid never told me what was the questions and what was his answer was. I asked and he said he signed something on the paper that said he is not allowed to share/discuss any test material.

DS also will not disclose the question, and signing the non-disclosure statement is consistent.

He did say the question was “confusing” at first, or poorly worded. Once he realized what was being asked, he said it was easy for him. He also said he could see how many of his classmates could have gotten it wrong. One girl he knows did not manage to finish the Q (she remains at the base school).

Making 12-13 year olds sign NDAs is fkn laughable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All the TJ bashing in every single TJ thread doesn’t comes from parents (TJ specifically). Its really sound like either someone with political agenda (who doesn’t have kids at TJ) or prep business center.

My kid at TJ is very happy student, the parents association is awesome, the students are very nice, very smart and well rounded, the teachers are caliber, the students activities is abundant.
I scratched my hair eveytime I read this thread, sound like TJ is a warzone… while my experience is the opposite.

I agree! My child will be applying for TJ next year. No prep, just passion. We went to see TJ, and the staff there is awesome. The school is very welcoming. I don’t know why people have such controversial conversations about TJ. Great school, and great staff. And the admission process is perfect fine! Instead of looking for kids who are just good at math and science, TJ is broadening their rage to see something that cannot be measured with tests, and that’s passion for STEM. If you are unhappy about the new process then maybe don’t apply for TJ because people there aren’t all math and science robots with no passion or life. The FCPS board is not going to listen to all these conversations about the old admission process. Even if the process does change, it will be in years. This post asked if we knew anything about the principle, not for a TJ war session.

Isn't the entire purpose of this particular governors school exactly the opposite of what you say it is?

It needs to return to the standardized tests. And the students should be required to have a minimum of As in Geometry in 8th to apply

[Anonymous]

Poor Mr. Mukai walking into this crazy den of nasty adults backed by extreme partisans who hate 40% of the county.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All the TJ bashing in every single TJ thread doesn’t comes from parents (TJ specifically). Its really sound like either someone with political agenda (who doesn’t have kids at TJ) or prep business center.

My kid at TJ is very happy student, the parents association is awesome, the students are very nice, very smart and well rounded, the teachers are caliber, the students activities is abundant.
I scratched my hair eveytime I read this thread, sound like TJ is a warzone… while my experience is the opposite.

I agree! My child will be applying for TJ next year. No prep, just passion. We went to see TJ, and the staff there is awesome. The school is very welcoming. I don’t know why people have such controversial conversations about TJ. Great school, and great staff. And the admission process is perfect fine! Instead of looking for kids who are just good at math and science, TJ is broadening their rage to see something that cannot be measured with tests, and that’s passion for STEM. If you are unhappy about the new process then maybe don’t apply for TJ because people there aren’t all math and science robots with no passion or life. The FCPS board is not going to listen to all these conversations about the old admission process. Even if the process does change, it will be in years. This post asked if we knew anything about the principle, not for a TJ war session.

Isn't the entire purpose of this particular governors school exactly the opposite of what you say it is?

It needs to return to the standardized tests. And the students should be required to have a minimum of As in Geometry in 8th to apply

I think the GPA should be 3.75+, and you SHOULD be at least doing geometry in eighth. I don’t get why people want standardized testing back so eagerly though? The admission team wants to see students being creative and understanding what they are doing, which perfectly correlates with the 1 question essay. I agree with you on everything else though. Also, letting everyone know the principle has nothing to do with the admission process. He actually wants to increase diversity. Again, if standardized testing did come back, it would take a long time. The FCPS board refuses to listen to these complaints, so you can try as much as you want to get testing back but it won’t work until a while. This new principle is not going to bring the old admission process back, sorry to break it to people who think he will…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
In September, the number of students recognized as National Merit semifinalists decreased to 81 in the Class of 2025, the first class enrolled in the school after the new admissions changes, from 165 the year before.

The discussion ends right there.

For you maybe. Other people also want to see the SOL failures and plummeting test scores.

Careful - you're going to give the Republicans a hard on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Poor Mr. Mukai walking into this crazy den of nasty adults backed by extreme partisans who hate 40% of the county.

40% who can't do math?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"In a June 7, 2020, email laying out her racial vision for the school, Bonitatibus said she sought to “close the equity gap” so the school would “reflect the racial composition in FCPS.” That year, the school had about 70% Asian students, about 20% white students and about 10% Black and Hispanic students. During the 2023-2024 school year, FCPS had different racial demographics, mirroring the distribution in the years earlier: 36% white, 29% Hispanic, 19% Asian, 10% Black, 6% multiple races, 0.3% Native American or Alaskan Native, and 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.

She challenged TJ’s racially and ethnically diverse families, some of whom had survived the Cultural Revolution in China and economic poverty in India, to “think of privileges you hold that others may not.” With the new admissions changes, the percentage of Asian students dropped dramatically, with small increases in the number of Black and Hispanic students and larger increases in the number of white students.

Under her leadership, TJ recently fell from its long-held position as the nation’s No. 1 high school to No. 14. Bonitatibus’ tenure was also marked by the controversial withholding of student National Merit awards. This issue drew sharp global criticism. In addition, during her watch, the TJ community was struck by the first suicides of TJ students in the school’s history, with two students tragically passing away in 2018 and 2020.

In September, the number of students recognized as National Merit semifinalists decreased to 81 in the Class of 2025, the first class enrolled in the school after the new admissions changes, from 165 the year before.

The following month, Bonitatibus sent an email to TJ's parents announcing she had “pursued and accepted” a “promotion” to a role in the Fairfax County Public Schools Department of Human Resources as “Executive Director of Talent Acquisition and Management,” a move that was met with widespread skepticism considering a slew of staff and teacher departures from TJ that had marked her stewardship of the school."

https://www.fairfaxtimes.com/articles/fcps-selects-tjhsst-alum-michael-mukai-to-be-new-principal/article_675df76c-cee9-11ef-9b2a-ab958f33eb91.html

A professional epitaph if I've ever seen one.

Fairfax Times is pushing RWNJ lies.

1. She had no role in TJ admissions.
2. Affluent families have privilege.
3. TJ did not hold the #1 rank often. It was #5 before admission changes.
4. The reform efforts are trying to make TJ less toxic and lower student stress. The race to nowhere only hurts kids.
5. Students were notified about commendations via email. And for college applications they would have known if they were commended several months earlier based on the cut off.


Republicans are lying sacks of sht.

#1. She may not have reviewed individual applications but she was very much part of the effort to change TJ admissions policy.

#2. Sounds like class warfare agit prop.

#3. TJ was regularly, if not always, ranked as the top public school in the country. We won’t have to worry about that any longer.

#4. TJ can now be quite stressful for kids who are in over their heads and face imposter syndrome. If you’re worried about kids challenging themselves, why bother with a STEM magnet (unless your agenda is simply to dole out rewards in the form of TJ admission to the less qualified)?

#5. Not a big deal but clearly what happened was that TJ under AB was more worried about the hurt feelings of TJ students were neither NMSF nor commended than recognizing the achievement of commended students. Again, no longer an issue since now the majority of TJ students are neither NMSF nor commended.

The issues around TJ transcend party affiliation. It’s funny you bash Republicans since TJ wouldn’t exist but for the advocacy of local Republican officials in the 1980s.

1. She has no role in admissions process - either defining it or implementing it.
2. It's just how the world works. Why the hesitancy to admit it?
3. TJ was ranked one of the top public HSs in the US. It still is today. It's still ranked higher than 99.44% of the pubic HSs.
4. A healthy amount of challenge would be best for all.
5. It was delayed mail and human error - not some big conspiracy.

The "article" is all BS RWNJ propaganda. Republicans love pushing lies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Former classmate of accomplished VA politician Hung Cao.

Cautiously optimistic about this new TJ principal.

What is that mean?
Does it has something to do with him?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The best part is in the email they had to make sure to talk of the former failed principals fake promotion to gatehouse! Lmao "following Dr. Ann Bonitatibus' promotion to a central office position."

Here is a better article calling out how awful the previous tj principal was pushing racial quotas causing TJ to fall form #1 in the nation to 14.


You are spreading RWNJ misinformation.

There are no quotas.

And TJ went from #5 to #14 out of 25,000 schools on the USNWR rankings. It was only #1 twice in the preceding decade.

It was #1 at least two years in a row before the admission change and then fell to #5, and then #14, and we’ll see where it ends up when this years rankings comes out in April. You and your #fakenews

It was #5 using data from before the admissions change.