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By Sara Good, CNN
A number of colleges in Fairfax County, Virginia, are beneath investigation after allegedly failing to provide college students their Nationwide Benefit Scholarship benefit awards in a well timed method, earlier than many college students wanted them for faculty functions.
State Legal professional Common Jason Miyares launched the investigation on January 4 towards Thomas Jefferson Excessive Faculty for Science and Know-how (TJHSST) for illegal discrimination, according to a press release from his workplace.
5 days later, Miyares expanded the investigation to incorporate all the Fairfax County Public Colleges system after receiving reviews that different colleges withheld awards as effectively, in keeping with a separate release from the lawyer basic.
Fairfax County Public Colleges can be investigating, through an impartial third celebration, its superintendent stated in a January 4 letter.
“Our present understanding is that the delay at TJHSST this fall was a singular scenario on account of human error, however we’ll go away it to our investigative evaluate to attract any ultimate conclusion,” stated Fairfax County Colleges Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid.
Thomas Jefferson Excessive Faculty in Alexandria is almost 66% Asian, in keeping with the Fairfax County Public Schools demographics.
The college can be being investigated for its admission insurance policies, which Miyares stated in a press release have considerably diminished the variety of Asian American college students in recent times.
“I’ve stated earlier than — in America about the one state-sanctioned type of bigotry is anti-Asian bigotry, and it’s flawed and we’re going to carry of us accountable,” Miyares stated in a press convention on January 4. “To the extent that withholding of any of those awards at Thomas Jefferson Excessive Faculty was primarily based on race, nationwide origin or some other protected standing beneath the Virginia human rights act, that’s illegal.”
The Nationwide Benefit Scholarship program is an “tutorial competitors for recognition and faculty undergraduate scholarships,” its website says.
College students ought to have been notified between March and June in the event that they obtained commendations or have been awarded one in every of three scholarships this system awards, in keeping with the web site.
Miyares defined the significance of the commendations and the benefit awards and the way they will have an effect on faculty functions and admissions for college students.
“Each American, each Virginian must be outraged {that a} baby in Virginia right now is being denied their goals due to their racial background, interval,” Miyares stated within the press convention.
In an interview with CNN affiliate WJLA on Sunday, Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) stated this incident was the results of a “maniacal give attention to equal outcomes for all college students in any respect prices.”
“This overarching effort for equal outcomes is hurting Virginia’s youngsters and their future. The failure of quite a few Fairfax County colleges to tell college students of their nationwide benefit awards might function a Virginia human rights violation. Because the lawyer basic follows by on my request to research the matter, we’ll resolve this,” stated a press release shared by the governor’s workplace Monday.
Schools the place college students had utilized have been knowledgeable of the awards or commendations that they obtained, in keeping with a January 9 letter from Reid.
CNN reached out to the superintendent on Monday for remark.
The lawyer basic “is taking a look at each criticism and allegation relating to potential violations of the Virginia Human Rights Act at Northern Virginia excessive colleges,” Miyares spokesperson Victoria LaCivita stated.
“We encourage any scholar or guardian who believes they’ve been discriminated towards to file a criticism with our Workplace of Civil Rights on our web site,” the lawyer basic’s workplace stated in a press release to CNN.
The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Athena Jones and Braden Walker contributed to this report
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