Report: Fairfax Schools Did Not Deliberately Withhold National Merit Notification

A third-party investigation into delays by a Northern Virginia school district in notifying some students of National Merit recognition found there was no evidence to suggest the school district deliberately withheld notifications, school administrators announced this week. 

In a letter to the community this week, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid wrote that after hours of interviews as part of a law firm’s independent investigation, investigators found “no evidence to suggest that FCPS deliberately withheld notification of Commended Student status from any student.” Reid added the investigation also revealed “no evidence of any inequity or racial bias in the actions taken by these schools regarding notifications or distribution of these certificates.” 

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Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Administration Directs Top School to Break Ties with Chinese Communist Party

Virginia Secretary of Education Aimee Rogstad Guidera directed a top public high school in the United States to stop accepting financial contributions from entities with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Grassroots parental advocacy organization Parents Defending Education (PDE) reported that, on March 9, Guidera wrote to Dr. Michelle Reid, superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), following PDE’s report that Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) and the school’s Partnership Fund (Fund) had “received over $1,000,000 worth of donations from Chinese interests since 2014.”

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Youngkin Rips Fairfax County Schools for Failing to Notify Students of National Merit Recognition: ‘Maniacal Focus on Equal Outcomes for All Students at All Costs’

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) said the failure of high schools in Fairfax County to notify students of their National Merit Scholarship program recognition is due to the district’s “maniacal focus on equal outcomes for all students at all costs.”

In an interview Friday with ABC 7News, Youngkin commented on the acknowledgement by seven high schools in Fairfax County that they did not inform students of their recognition in time for their college scholarship and admission deadlines.

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Some Virginia School Districts Concerned About New Transgender Model Policies Draft

Some school districts are already signaling resistance to new draft model policies from the Virginia Department of Education that will repeal current model policies controlling school district transgender policy.

“We want to assure you that Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) will continue its commitment to both implement and develop gender affirming policies for all ACPS students. As a School Board and division, we are concerned with these ‘model policies’ that do not align with our mission, vision and core values to support all students and staff, in particular our core value of ensuring that we provide a welcoming environment for everyone in our school community,” Alexandria City Public Schools said in a letter to students, staff and families.

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