Close Thomas Jefferson High School, Close Stuyvesant High School

It cannot be the job of public education to decide which 13-year-olds will win, and which will lose. There is a much better answer.

When The New York Times published a story on the admissions legal battle at Virginia’s Thomas Jefferson High School hundreds (and hundreds) of comments appeared. Many of those claimed that altered admissions standards for the “elite” school were an assault on “meritocracy.” “The only thing admissions should be based on is merit” was a constant refrain from those who believe that “merit” is only deduced by a multiple choice test for which (for a few thousand dollars) your child can be “prepped.”

Newsweek, “The Number 1 High School in America Offers a Real Head Start” (and leaves the rest of the kids behind) Photo: Vicky Somma/Newsweek

Running alongside this argument was the “model minority” theme (though, this being The Times, those words were avoided). The reason TJHS had become mostly Asian (and white) is simply that those racial groups “value education” and “invest in their children,” in obvious contrast with the (undescribed, of course) lazy, irresponsible African-Americans and LatinX.

Diversity Not. At Thomas Jefferson High School less than 5% of students are Black and LatinX. 37% of the district’s students are Black and LatinX, with another 6% being mixed race (a subgroup too small for TJHS to mention).

Not all, I need to make clear. Many (including myself) pushed back on both of these white supremacist theories. But we all know why a Republican governor and Republican judges will declare that “it is only fair” that Blacks, Latinas and Latinos, those with disabilities, the non-neurotypical, and the victims of systemic poverty remain excluded from a school legendary for sending kids to “top” universities.

Today in Orwellian Language, the right-wing backed “Coalition for TJ” claims to be advocating for “diversity” (meaning all but two racial groups are systematically excluded) and “excellence” (meaning your kids can be prepped for multiple choice tests).

“Educator Vijay Tripathi helps prepare eighth-graders for the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology admissions test. The families of Meaghan Allard, Tejal Patel…