Va. college delayed nationwide award notices, mother and father need leaders fired

“It’s actually vital to have the ability to say, ‘Hey, I simply need you to know I’m among the many high tutorial performers in our nation,’” mentioned Asra Nomani, guardian of a former Thomas Jefferson pupil and training advocate who wrote an op-ed in regards to the college withholding the notifications. “Checking that little field on the appliance turns into your ticket into every kind of alternatives.”

Now, mother and father plan to ship a letter to state and county training leaders demanding that Ann Bonitatibus, the principal at Thomas Jefferson, and Brandon Kosatka, director of pupil providers, be terminated from their posts. The mother and father additionally need a constant coverage throughout colleges and faculty districts that mandates how college students must be knowledgeable about awards.

Annually, roughly 1.5 million college students compete within the Nationwide Benefit Scholarship Program, in keeping with its web site. College students enter by taking the PSAT/NMSQT, a nationwide standardized take a look at, often throughout their junior yr.

This yr, simply 50,000 of the best scorers certified for recognition. The highest scorers are named finalists or semifinalists, which means they will compete for a Benefit Scholarship award. Fairfax County college students who earned that standing have been acknowledged publicly early this yr.

With the Counseled College students, Fairfax County Public Faculties known as the delay a “one-time human error” and denied allegations that Thomas Jefferson officers intentionally withheld info from the 261 college students receiving that distinction. College counselors have despatched emails and made telephone calls to schools the place affected college students had utilized to tell them of scholars’ commendations, mentioned Julie Moult, a colleges spokeswoman.

“FCPS understands the laborious work and dedication of every pupil who competes for school acceptance and scholarship alternatives,” Moult mentioned in a press release. “We’re persevering with to look into this matter and can take any crucial steps to make sure consistency in acceptable and well timed notification of Nationwide Benefit recognitions going ahead.”

About 34,000 college students nationwide certified as counseled college students. These college students don’t compete for Benefit Scholarships however are eligible for different awards. The Nationwide Benefit Scholarship Company, which oversees the competitors, advises excessive colleges to inform college students of this distinction — a course of that didn’t occur till late this fall at Thomas Jefferson, mother and father mentioned. Fairfax Faculties officers didn’t reply a query about whether or not different excessive colleges within the system have had points notifying counseled college students.

The problem at Thomas Jefferson got here to mild after guardian Shawna Yashar found in mid-November her son had been awarded a letter of commendation by the Nationwide Benefit Scholarship Company, Nomani mentioned. College students are usually notified of their commended-student standing in September to allow them to mark the excellence on school functions, in keeping with the Nationwide Benefit Scholarship Company.

Yashar’s son mentioned he and different college students acquired the letters on Nov. 14 throughout their homeroom interval. Yashar mentioned she contacted Bonitatibus in regards to the delay, and ultimately spoke on the telephone with Kosatka.

Kosatka, in keeping with Yashar, mentioned the college wished handy the letters out “discreetly.”

“There’s not numerous children who didn’t get both award, and we didn’t need them to really feel unhealthy about it,” Yashar recalled Kosatka saying. College system officers mentioned they might not confirm that dialog passed off.

“I used to be simply actually upset that they didn’t present this info to college students,” Yashar mentioned in an interview with The Submit on Thursday.

Different mother and father have since come ahead to share related experiences or criticize the college for the delay. Harry Jackson, whose son is a junior, mentioned the problem might have “catastrophic” results for the scholar physique at Thomas Jefferson — nearly all of that are college students of colour.

“It’s an asset,” Jackson mentioned in regards to the nationwide distinction. “It has worth, in the event you’re promptly notified.”

Nomani mentioned her son, who graduated from Thomas Jefferson in 2021, doubtless missed out on alternatives as a result of he was not notified about his Counseled Pupil standing in 2020. (A faculty spokeswoman mentioned the district’s digital data present counseled college students from the Class of 2021 have been notified by e mail in September 2020.)

“We weren’t in a position to placed on his software that he had this honor, to have him then recognized for scholarship packages,” Nomani mentioned. She is now planning to contact her son’s college and requested to have his software reconsidered.