Anonymous wrote:Are you saying "the MS-13 issue" only popped up when the name changed over the summer? I find it interesting that some people who would get offended if anyone mentioned potential issues at Stuart are now doing everything to make the school look bad after the name change. You may or may not be one of them, but they are plentiful. Since you are so knowledgeable about the MS-13 issue at Justice, please provide specific information so that OP can make an informed decision. That's not said sarcastically, give the details rather than unsubstantiated innuendo if you're trying to be helpful.

Anonymous wrote:and yet no one addresses the issue of MS-13 at Justice?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lot of tension over new name.

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/articles/opinions/an-open-letter-to-j-e-b-stuart-justice-high/article_f0dbf38e-bdd6-11e8-9a04-0bb28d3e9e03.html

The letter is laughable. This is a quote from it: "J.E.B. Stuart High School was a model of student civility, interracial harmony, cultural diversity, and mutual support." The student body hasn't changed, only the name. If the authors were really that caring, why would they punish the student body (which according to the article supported keeping the name JEB Stuart) by withdrawing financial support because of something the students had no control over? We are mad so won't support the students who are aren't even to blame is basically what they are saying. That's fine, but it says a lot about the authors. They come across as bitter and petty. As far as the voting process, they are correct that it was not well executed. There was no name that garnered over 50 percent of the vote so, contrary to what the opinion pieces says, there was no "unequivocal support to retain the name" of the school or for any other name. The majority of voters selected something other than JEB Stuart. As no name garnered more than 50 percent, there should have been a run off between the top two vote getters. Instead, the school board chose a name other than JEB Stuart because most voters didn't want to retain the name (as reflected in the fact that less than 50 percent of the voters voted to keep the name), and also didn't select one of the other names because they also didn't receive over 50 percent of the vote. The school board instead selected a name themselves, which they had a legal right to do. It is interesting that more than 50 percent of the votes didn't want to retain JEB Stuart or "Stuart," and yet the authors claim there was "unequivocal support" for keeping the name and that the name change was unwanted. While I agree the voting process was botched, the opinion piece is exactly that, an opinion piece that slants facts and misunderstand the meaning of unequivocal and unwanted.

Anonymous wrote:Lot of tension over new name.

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/articles/opinions/an-open-letter-to-j-e-b-stuart-justice-high/article_f0dbf38e-bdd6-11e8-9a04-0bb28d3e9e03.html

Anonymous wrote:Lot of tension over new name.

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/articles/opinions/an-open-letter-to-j-e-b-stuart-justice-high/article_f0dbf38e-bdd6-11e8-9a04-0bb28d3e9e03.html

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, we were in your shoes and moved last year. We loved our neighbors, and many had kids that were just leaving for college from JEB. The stories they told us seemed balanced (some good, some bad), and most admitted that if they were going to do it again they might have considered private. Some indeed ended up sending their kids to catholic schools. In the end we talked to several teachers and two school administrators (including two family members that teach in NoVa), and as much as we know there are some kids that thrive in that school pyramid - we decided that we would rather stake the odds in their favor by moving to a better school pyramid. Looking back we have no regrets.

We stayed and I regret staying. It's frowned upon in my group of friends to say anything but positive things about Justice, but I wish I had moved before our oldest got to high school. Moving in the middle of high school isn't ideal. I think your kids get exposed to diversity in that there are kids of different races, but it's segregated because you don't have a significant number of higher SES minority families. My DC's friends refer to themselves as "the white girls" and generally stick to themselves. I think there is very much a have and have not divide, and I don't think it's a positive way to experience diversity. The academics are fine, but not great. I'm considering moving when my oldest is a senior and can drive to school and sending my younger kids to a different high school. I'd move sooner rather than later.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you to those of you who responded. I really just want the best education for my kids and it sounds like justice isn’t it. Thank you for confirming my suspicions.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, we were in your shoes and moved last year. We loved our neighbors, and many had kids that were just leaving for college from JEB. The stories they told us seemed balanced (some good, some bad), and most admitted that if they were going to do it again they might have considered private. Some indeed ended up sending their kids to catholic schools. In the end we talked to several teachers and two school administrators (including two family members that teach in NoVa), and as much as we know there are some kids that thrive in that school pyramid - we decided that we would rather stake the odds in their favor by moving to a better school pyramid. Looking back we have no regrets.

We stayed and I regret staying. It's frowned upon in my group of friends to say anything but positive things about Justice, but I wish I had moved before our oldest got to high school. Moving in the middle of high school isn't ideal. I think your kids get exposed to diversity in that there are kids of different races, but it's segregated because you don't have a significant number of higher SES minority families. My DC's friends refer to themselves as "the white girls" and generally stick to themselves. I think there is very much a have and have not divide, and I don't think it's a positive way to experience diversity. The academics are fine, but not great. I'm considering moving when my oldest is a senior and can drive to school and sending my younger kids to a different high school. I'd move sooner rather than later.

Why do the nonwhite families need to be “higher SES”? So many amazing IB students and past valedictorians at Justice are from very humble beginnings, and from what I see the kids all hang out with the other kids they have classes with regardless of race. Maybe your daughter has some implicit race/class biases considering you seem to only want her hanging out with nonwhite kids if their families have money and she self-refers to her friend group as “the whote girls”. There are amazing teachers and students at Justice, the majority are. It’s a great school with some challenges due to struggling ESOL students, but your post sounds like a you/your daughter problem rather than a pervasive problem at the school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, we were in your shoes and moved last year. We loved our neighbors, and many had kids that were just leaving for college from JEB. The stories they told us seemed balanced (some good, some bad), and most admitted that if they were going to do it again they might have considered private. Some indeed ended up sending their kids to catholic schools. In the end we talked to several teachers and two school administrators (including two family members that teach in NoVa), and as much as we know there are some kids that thrive in that school pyramid - we decided that we would rather stake the odds in their favor by moving to a better school pyramid. Looking back we have no regrets.

We stayed and I regret staying. It's frowned upon in my group of friends to say anything but positive things about Justice, but I wish I had moved before our oldest got to high school. Moving in the middle of high school isn't ideal. I think your kids get exposed to diversity in that there are kids of different races, but it's segregated because you don't have a significant number of higher SES minority families. My DC's friends refer to themselves as "the white girls" and generally stick to themselves. I think there is very much a have and have not divide, and I don't think it's a positive way to experience diversity. The academics are fine, but not great. I'm considering moving when my oldest is a senior and can drive to school and sending my younger kids to a different high school. I'd move sooner rather than later.

Anonymous wrote:OP, we were in your shoes and moved last year. We loved our neighbors, and many had kids that were just leaving for college from JEB. The stories they told us seemed balanced (some good, some bad), and most admitted that if they were going to do it again they might have considered private. Some indeed ended up sending their kids to catholic schools. In the end we talked to several teachers and two school administrators (including two family members that teach in NoVa), and as much as we know there are some kids that thrive in that school pyramid - we decided that we would rather stake the odds in their favor by moving to a better school pyramid. Looking back we have no regrets.