Four more Northern Virginia high school principals notified parents on Friday admitting that they had withheld National Merit award notifications from students.
Shawn DeRose, principal of Annandale High School wrote a letter for parents noting that when the delay of award notifications came to light at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST), they did their own internal review and discovered that the high school “did not receive their Commended Scholar certificates from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.”
VIRGINIA AG EXPANDS CIVIL RIGHTS INVESTIGATION INTO FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
DeRose said they immediately notified students who had applied and the high school is now “a part of the investigative review by an independent third party into the circumstances surrounding this situation that has already been initiated by FCPS.”
“Please be assured that we remain resolutely committed to supporting every student in reaching their unique and fullest potential,” the Annandale High School principal said in the letter.
Edison High School principal Pamela Brumfield in Alexandria, Virginia also notified parents in an identical letter Friday night.
“It has come to light that notifications to Edison High School students designated as Commended Students this past fall were also delayed,” Brumfield wrote. “While we were able to mark this achievement with a celebration of these students in late November, the notifications happened later than we had hoped.”
Alfonso Smith, principal of Lewis High School in Springfield, wrote the same letter Friday night saying that they notified students “later than we would have hoped.”
The fourth principal to submit the same letter to parents on Friday was West Potomac High School principal Tanganyika Millard.
The Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) parent who discovered the withholding of National Merit certificates in November last year is outraged about the new developments of schools.
“Fairfax County Public Schools has spent far too much time on pet projects and not academics. It’s time for that to change,” mother Shawna Yashar told a local news outlet.
Last week, two Fairfax high schools apologized to parents for not sending merit award notifications. The principals at Westfield High School and Langley High School sent almost identical emails to families.
“It’s a civil rights disaster blamed on ‘staffing,'” said Fairfax County mom Asra Nomani of the National Merit scandal.
In late December, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears called on Attorney General Jason Miyares to investigate the incidents of schools delaying National Merit award notifications, a practice that could have hurt college-bound students wanting to use the National Merit certificates to boost up their college applications when applying last fall but some notifications either were very delayed or never happened.
Miyares launched a civil rights investigation into Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology administration last week and expanded it to the entire Fairfax County school system earlier this week.
Fairfax County schools are not alone in neglecting to notify high school students.
Loudoun County Public Schools Acting Superintendent Daniel Smith acknowledged in a school board meeting Tuesday night that 14 of 17 county high schools had delayed notifying students of status as National Merit “Commended Scholars.”
Miyares reportedly said he plans to include Loudoun in his review allegations.
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“We’re going to review what we’re hearing is happening and what we are telling parents in Northern Virginia, is if you think that you’ve been the victim of either this or any other type of racial ethnic discrimination, go to the Office of the Attorney General’s website, your civil rights division, and you could file a complaint,” said the Virginia Attorney General. “We review every complaint that comes through our office. We’re going to review these as well. And right now, we’re looking at Fairfax. We’re going to review every complaint that comes through our doors.”
