TJ Falls to 14th in the Nation Per US News

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a freshman in McLean. There are many kids in his grade who got rejected who really should be at TJ. If admissions was based on merit, these kids should be at TJ. I’m sure equity hurt them being an Asian kid from McLean.

If you take a look at the rankings, they aren't doing their part to bring up McLean's rankings. It is below Oakton.

Or maybe the rankings are a bit silly? And don't have any larger meaning beyond some editor's paycheck?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Having access to a strong high school program is paramount for students as they face an ever-changing world,” Liana Loewus, the managing editor of education at U.S. News & World Report, said in a press release. “Making data on our high schools available helps parents ensure their child is in the educational environment that best sets them up to thrive.”

The slide in the rankings for Thomas Jefferson High School comes after it changed its admissions process.

In 2020, Fairfax County’s school board voted to overhaul the admissions process to eliminate some testing requirements and implement an essay lottery system in a bid to increase the number of black and Hispanic students attending the school.

But the changes resulted in a substantially lower level of Asian students being admitted to the school.

The same level of Asian students being admitted to the school, not a lower level.

Racial exclusion of Asian applications from expanded seat quota, caused the Asian student percent to go from 73% in 2020 to 54% in 2021, in just one admission cycle.

[Anonymous]

Is the waitlist all kids without economic and racial factors or is it a mix?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Having access to a strong high school program is paramount for students as they face an ever-changing world,” Liana Loewus, the managing editor of education at U.S. News & World Report, said in a press release. “Making data on our high schools available helps parents ensure their child is in the educational environment that best sets them up to thrive.”

The slide in the rankings for Thomas Jefferson High School comes after it changed its admissions process.

In 2020, Fairfax County’s school board voted to overhaul the admissions process to eliminate some testing requirements and implement an essay lottery system in a bid to increase the number of black and Hispanic students attending the school.

But the changes resulted in a substantially lower level of Asian students being admitted to the school.

The same level of Asian students being admitted to the school, not a lower level.

Racial exclusion of Asian applications from expanded seat quota, caused the Asian student percent to go from 73% in 2020 to 54% in 2021, in just one admission cycle.

The same or similar absolute number of Asian students were admitted before and after the admissions change. That means the same level of Asian students. The level of black and Hispanic students increased (from zero/TS to non-zero). Percentage is a different measure.

[Anonymous]

It really is a shame that TJ's overall rating from US News and World Report slipped from a 100 to a 99.92.

Absolutely devastating. /s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The principal in one of the recent emails expressed concerns with significant number of admitted "9th grade students scoring below proficient on the initial Math Inventory", and needing to put them on ALEKS remedial math starting in the third month itself. If admissions was merit based, remedial math should not be needed at the school start.

With a lower caliber student body being admitted using equity instead of merit as the criteria, TJ's ranking continues to decline from 1st in the nation to now 14th nationally.

https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/VAEDUFCPS/bulletins/38d509c

Even students that completed Geometry in middle school are finding out they lack the necessary proficiency but after getting admitted. After getting enrolled in Algebra 2 ( TJ Math 3), many of them are being recommended to step back to the remedial TJ Math 2.5, which revisits middle school Algebra 1 and Geometry. This is unprecedented, as the previous merit-based entrance test would have filtered out applicants lacking proficiency in middle school math. Instead of teaching Math to a well-qualified admitted class, teacher are stuck in circles having to reteach middle school math.

OK but the link above is not a source for that. Is there public data to back up that claim?

Back in 2012 we had the same freak out, after all: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-new-thomas-jefferson-it-includes-remedial-math/2012/05/25/gJQAlZRYqU_story.html

I'm not at all a proponent of the new admissions criteria, but people throw around a lot of claims about TJ kids having to take remedial math. These concerns have been around for a long time now.

It's not merely people throwing claims; the TJ principal has repeatedly mentioned in orientations, including in the recent email mentioned above, that remedial math is available from the outset for freshmen. This remedial math isn't for TJ courses but rather for prerequisite middle school math, which the incoming class lacks as they are admitted based on equity without any math assessment.

[Anonymous]

Additionally, the data used for the US News and World Report Rankings was from the 2021-22 school year. It would have only been the freshmen class that year who would have been admitted under the new admissions process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Having access to a strong high school program is paramount for students as they face an ever-changing world,” Liana Loewus, the managing editor of education at U.S. News & World Report, said in a press release. “Making data on our high schools available helps parents ensure their child is in the educational environment that best sets them up to thrive.”

The slide in the rankings for Thomas Jefferson High School comes after it changed its admissions process.

In 2020, Fairfax County’s school board voted to overhaul the admissions process to eliminate some testing requirements and implement an essay lottery system in a bid to increase the number of black and Hispanic students attending the school.

But the changes resulted in a substantially lower level of Asian students being admitted to the school.

The same level of Asian students being admitted to the school, not a lower level.

Racial exclusion of Asian applications from expanded seat quota, caused the Asian student percent to go from 73% in 2020 to 54% in 2021, in just one admission cycle.

The same or similar absolute number of Asian students were admitted before and after the admissions change. That means the same level of Asian students. The level of black and Hispanic students increased (from zero/TS to non-zero). Percentage is a different measure.

Racial quota based admissions. How can they put a limit on one race of students, and expand admissions for other races so precisely unless a racial proxy was mined for and used?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Having access to a strong high school program is paramount for students as they face an ever-changing world,” Liana Loewus, the managing editor of education at U.S. News & World Report, said in a press release. “Making data on our high schools available helps parents ensure their child is in the educational environment that best sets them up to thrive.”

The slide in the rankings for Thomas Jefferson High School comes after it changed its admissions process.

In 2020, Fairfax County’s school board voted to overhaul the admissions process to eliminate some testing requirements and implement an essay lottery system in a bid to increase the number of black and Hispanic students attending the school.

But the changes resulted in a substantially lower level of Asian students being admitted to the school.

The same level of Asian students being admitted to the school, not a lower level.

Racial exclusion of Asian applications from expanded seat quota, caused the Asian student percent to go from 73% in 2020 to 54% in 2021, in just one admission cycle.

The same or similar absolute number of Asian students were admitted before and after the admissions change. That means the same level of Asian students. The level of black and Hispanic students increased (from zero/TS to non-zero). Percentage is a different measure.

Racial quota based admissions. How can they put a limit on one race of students, and expand admissions for other races so precisely unless a racial proxy was mined for and used?

There are no quotas or limitations in the admissions process, old or new.

[Anonymous]

It amazes me how many people think FCPS just used a racial quota for TJ admissions. Everyone — including the farthest-left member of the school board — knows that would be racist and illegal, so why does anyone think FCPS would give it a second thought?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The principal in one of the recent emails expressed concerns with significant number of admitted "9th grade students scoring below proficient on the initial Math Inventory", and needing to put them on ALEKS remedial math starting in the third month itself. If admissions was merit based, remedial math should not be needed at the school start.

With a lower caliber student body being admitted using equity instead of merit as the criteria, TJ's ranking continues to decline from 1st in the nation to now 14th nationally.

https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/VAEDUFCPS/bulletins/38d509c

Before the admissions change in 2021, less than 4% of students had the lowest level of middle school math, Algebra 1. With the removal of the admissions test and to increase equity, approximately 30% of admitted class constituted of Algebra 1 students, many of whom require remedial classes after entering TJ.

The national ranking can only endure such a decline in talent for a limited time. It dropped from 1st to 5th after the admissions change, and now to 14th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The principal in one of the recent emails expressed concerns with significant number of admitted "9th grade students scoring below proficient on the initial Math Inventory", and needing to put them on ALEKS remedial math starting in the third month itself. If admissions was merit based, remedial math should not be needed at the school start.

With a lower caliber student body being admitted using equity instead of merit as the criteria, TJ's ranking continues to decline from 1st in the nation to now 14th nationally.

https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/VAEDUFCPS/bulletins/38d509c

Before the admissions change in 2021, less than 4% of students had the lowest level of middle school math, Algebra 1. With the removal of the admissions test and to increase equity, approximately 30% of admitted class constituted of Algebra 1 students, many of whom require remedial classes after entering TJ.

The national ranking can only endure such a decline in talent for a limited time. It dropped from 1st to 5th after the admissions change, and now to 14th.

No, it dropped before the admissions change. Look carefully at the dates of data they are using. As noted upthread, "the data used for the [2024] US News and World Report Rankings was from the 2021-22 school year. It would have only been the freshmen class that year who would have been admitted under the new admissions process."

[Anonymous]

Before the school had all gifted to above average students. Now, the bottom has been added, is on a lower track. Tracking is usually not good but even worse when you are in a magnet. Watch the bottom suffer in college admissions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The lawsuits about the "controversial" admissions changes were national news. Of course they mentioned them.

These rankings always lag a few years behind. People now know how toxic TJ was, and it's reflected in its ratings, but things will eventually start improving once the better process gets recognized.

[Anonymous]

Way less people worried about not receiving a NMSF commended status certificate, so I guess thats a plus.