OPINION:
Intentionally withholding recognition of students who excel in order to create equity does exactly the opposite (“Virginia’s Lt. Gov. calls for investigation into top high school that withheld merit awards,” Web, Dec. 31).
The purpose of National Merit Scholarship recognition is to note student excellence, regardless of race, creed, color or national origin. Failure to notify students who earned the distinction was not only disingenuous, it robbed other students of being able to applaud their fellow scholars’ achievements.
Those who get into and attend Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, are already good students, so using equity as an excuse for this move is a nonstarter.
Instead of spending huge sums on lawyers and legal fees, why doesn’t the county spend that money on creating another “TJ”? If you desire equity and equality, you make them happen by widening opportunity, not denying it. The school’s decision to withhold information from its award-winning students no doubt hamstrung these students as they made decisions about college. It’s time for Fairfax County to reexamine its ideas of equity and how equality is reached.
PATRICK HAMP
Oak Hill, Virginia
Please read our comment policy before commenting.