A woke school district in Virginia that is already under investigation for discriminatory programs has fallen under additional scrutiny after inviting only Black and Hispanic students to join a college prep program.

Fairfax County Public Schools is currently under investigation by the state Attorney General for allegedly withholding merit awards from students at Thomas Jefferson High School in an effort to “boost equity.”

Now, another school in the same district, Cooper Middle School is facing backlash for an email that many have said is racially discriminatory.

In an email to parents, the middle school invited students to apply to Fairfax County’s College Partnership Program (CPP). In the letter, the school laid out the applicant criteria:

  • Students who are the first in their family to attend college in the U.S.
  • Black or African American students
  • Hispanic students, of one or more race
  • Students with disabilities
  • English learners
  • Economically disadvantaged students

This email indicated that all non-disabled Asian or white students whose family member(s) have attended college are not welcome to apply.

The letter also details the important offerings of the CPP, which include academic counseling, college experiences, assistance with completing college and scholarship applications, and a summer experiential learning opportunity, to name a few.

These program features would be invaluable to all students in the district, not just the Black and Hispanic ones. Certain students are being denied college preparation resources and opportunities on the basis of race.

On the Fairfax County Public Schools website, they describe a “typical CPP student” as someone who is African-American, American Indian, Alaskan Native, or Hispanic – effectively leaving out Asian or white students from both qualifying lists.

Author and journalist Asra Nomani shared the middle school’s exclusionary tactics on Twitter and condemned their racist program, saying:

“In the 20th century, Asian Exclusion Act denied Asians equal opportunities. Now [Fairfax Schools] promotes a college prep program with race-based admissions, excluding Asians + whites. A judge already ruled [Fairfax Schools] violated US Constitution in new anti-Asian admissions.”

One of the parents at Cooper Middle School who works as a lawyer reported that the CPP was problematic.

“This program excludes children based on race, and it seems to be in direct violation of the school district’s own anti-discrimination policy,” he said

Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.


We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.