Ten years ago the vast majority of TJ seniors who applied to Virginia’s premier university, The University of Virginia, were accepted.  Over 200 students applied each year and over 140 chose to attend.  Many of those students became Echols Scholars and Rodman Scholars.  Every year the number of students from TJ who are accepted by UVA has declined although more students apply each year.  In 2011 and 2012, TJ sent 106 students to UVA.  Last year the number was down to only 87 students attending UVA from TJ. Is there a quota at UVA that discriminates against Jefferson students?  Many parents and students at TJ believe that to be the case, just as we know there is a quota for students from Northern Virginia.  More details here. Â
Does UVA Discriminate Against Students at TJHSST?
written by Jeanine Martin
May 29, 2014
11 comments
Jeanine Martin
Also known as Lovettsville Lady, I am a Republican activist in the wilds of western Loudoun County.
11 comments
There are no restrictions, targets, or quotas affecting how many students we can admit from a particular high school (or county, for that matter).
So sorry I am so late to the conversation. Anyone with questions should feel free to contact the Office of Admission. We’re happy to address the rumors that come up every year.
There have been questions about the continued rigor of the curriculum at TJ, that it is not quite to the same level as in previous years. Then there is the whole question about the number of in state students that UVA takes as part of the first year class.
Jeannine, it would be helpful to explain what TJHSST stood for. And why do you focus on ONE school? Seems like a terribly narrow view.
This might help: http://lmgtfy.com/?q=TJHSST
Of course not, Janine. I for one am very pleased other excellent HS are able to send more students to UVA. Why do we assume only TJ students are the best qualified? I can also tell you a few years back TJ started accepting students who were not interested in Math and Science, but the Arts. Hence the decline you see today. Many of those HS students that didn’t make it into TJ, even though they had excelled in the STEM fields and should’ve been addmitted, are the ones going to UVA from other Schools today. I happen to know first-hand a handful of them from West Potomac HS and others. They are valedictorians, and studying Engineering, Math, Chemistry, and Physics.
Anytime a headline asks a question, the answer is usually “No”.
Will the Virginia budget comes up way short of projections? Wow, even after HB 2313?
Isn’t our “toilet bowl” economy about to be flushed again?
Bruce, is the answer yes or no?
Betteridge’s Law of Headlines only applies to headlines and not comments.
However in answer to your question, I’m going to vote “No”. The magical defecit just all of a sudden appeared on the radar screen so it’s probably a horsecrap scare tactic. I’ll go so far as to predict that Magical Money will somehow be found to cancel out this fake deficit and we’ll all live happily ever after.
Finally we agree on something!
There is nothing magical or untrue about the deficit we face. Look at GDP decay in the first quarter or at state income tax revenues falling during the first quarter (http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2014/05/state-income-tax-revenues-.html ). Our non-recovering economy that has been limping along has now fallen into another pit (a situation that is unlikely to change quickly with more Obamacare requirements and EPA interferences in the economy coming online).
I don’t think it is discrimination against Jefferson. There are a lot of factors in play here. The economy and the cost of higher education have forced a lot of parents and students to reevaluate the need to spend money on out of state tuition. UVa’s applications have been going up over the past several years, bringing a lot of competition to the application process.
To assume that it is discrimination against Jefferson, takes away from other schools and students who may be just as bright, just as dedicated, and well rounded as those students at TJHSST. While TJHSST may be one of the best schools, it is not the only school nor is every student in that school more academically qualified than others.