We are concerned parents of Loudoun County students and do not agree with the proposed change of School based quota and lottery criteria for admission to the Academies of Loudoun. Currently, students are selected for admission based upon merit because the curriculum is rigorous. Quota systems are discriminatory as they do not value the qualifications or merit of the students. Supporting economically disadvantaged students should not be at the expense of well-deserving, merited students. The proposed lottery system seems particularly cavalier in the way it is being rolled out, without any significant input from affected parents, students or teachers and is really another form of discrimination under the guise of diversity. A Forbes article states that the idea of lottery runs up against American ideas and assumptions about “merit” and self-determination. Applicants want to be recognized for their achievements and don’t want to be randomized. Good old American competitiveness drives this behavior. To have a lottery system goes against everything Americans are led to believe about individualism and free will.

An informal poll conducted of graduating AOS seniors at ACL on the randomness of the admissions process indicated 100% of those polled were not in favor and would not take pride in being called AOS-ACL graduates if this were implemented. Quoting one of the seniors, “Imagine, as a 12th grade student, picking which college to attend by rolling a die. This proposal is exactly that, except it is the Academies of Loudoun who rolls a die for their aspiring incoming freshmen class.” While the causes mentioned for the proposal are noble, they are not fully addressed; moreover, the proposal does a disservice to ACL students, who were clearly disenchanted with it. There are 2 possible outcomes if this proposal is implemented, either the students will struggle, or the program will need to be made less rigorous to accommodate them. Neither outcome is positive.

The proposed change intends to impose a limit to the number of students that can be selected from each Middle School. This change will severely impact the chances of students from highly competitive middle schools and put them at a severe disadvantage. As a data point, if we consider the historical data for Thomas Jefferson High School in Fairfax county, it indicates that the schools around the Great Falls area send more students than any other areas. If Thomas Jefferson placed a limit on students from the Great Falls area, they would not admit the best and most deserving students. The same will be true for Loudoun County too, due to which, we believe this school-wise cap does not improve the admissions process.

The proposed change also intends to introduce a lottery system for the final admission offer. As per our understanding, a list of students will be picked from each school according to their performance in the qualifying tests. A lottery will then be used to make the final selection. The use of a lottery system for admission defeats the purpose of the qualifying tests. A student who scores higher than another student from the list may not get picked in the lottery and thus not get admitted. This would be akin to the most competitive colleges, who strive to admit the most deserving student body, employing a lottery system to send admissions offers. This admissions method would be absurd for a college choosing students based on merit. It is likewise absurd for such a rigorous program as the Academies of Loudoun. A truly merit-based system would better reward the extremely diligent students who constantly strive to perform their best in their studies.

Lastly, the proposal also states plans to include economically disadvantaged students proportionally. We appreciate the school board's concerns to help the economically disadvantaged students, but it should not be at the expense of other students. Moreover, students that are accommodated by lowering the standards of admission will struggle to keep up with the rigorous curriculum. Once we have that situation the only way to resolve it would be to lower the rigor of the program which is not a favorable outcome.

Given all of the above reasons, if we are serious about affecting change then these should be first incorporated at the elementary and middle school level. We should not change the rules of the game but we should provide equal opportunity to prepare for the game. Outreach programs with the sole purpose of promoting diversity and inclusion (such as LevelUp) can be implemented in elementary and middle school to set up these students for success. We need more opportunities for economically disadvantaged students to participate in STEM programs at both the elementary and middle school levels. Subsidizing STEM programs like Math Olympiad, Math counts, Science Olympiad, Science Bowl, in addition to tutoring from Science/Math Honor Society kids for academically capable students at the Elementary/middle school level can help capable students that cannot afford these programs.  

In conclusion, we support the goal of diversity and inclusion but changing the admissions criteria via a lottery system is NOT the solution. We recommend instead starting the outreach programs at the elementary and middle school this Fall of 2020 so kids in these programs have the Knowledge, Skills and Abilities required to thrive at the Academies.