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Dear TJHSST Families:
As we head into our final weeks of school, I would like to sincerely thank all our students, faculty, staff, parents, and community friends who have helped us soar! We have continued to grow our TJ family and earn amazing accolades throughout the year. We have been able to reach our goals by staying true to our core values that keep students at the center. We supported our outstanding teachers who delivered world-class education and have celebrated our students’ countless notable achievements.
Our reflections on the past year reveal an asset mindset. We met students where they were and guided them to meet their aspirations. We accomplished our rigorous curricular standards in meaningful ways. Flexibility has been among our keys to our success. Teachers were mindful of students’ workload, designed creative lessons and assessments, and were responsive to student advocacy. These actions have been natural extensions to the work we started several years ago as a Challenge Success school, and we look forward to programmatic innovations that will bring TJ to the next level.
Looking to our future, I am excited for the 550 freshmen in the Class of 2027 whom we welcomed recently at a preview night. I am so very proud of how our school community creates a culture of belonging and support as we continue to grow and thrive.
Finally, congratulations, thanks, and best wishes to the Class of 2023! Each of their four years at TJ has been a unique experience and this class has accomplished everything, and more, when compared to those in the past. They have impressed me with their strength in mind, body and spirit. The Class of 2023 has been an excellent role model for their younger peers. We will miss our seniors and their families!
I invite all families and friends to tune in to our Class of 2023 Commencement Ceremony from Eagle Bank Arena which broadcasts live starting at 7:20 p.m., Saturday June 10, at the following Link to Live Stream.
Wishing everyone a fulfilling, healthy, and lively summer!
Sincerely,
Dr. Ann N. Bonitatibus
TJHSST Proud Principal
The graduation ceremony for the Class of 2023 will be the evening of Saturday, June 10 at 7:30 p.m., at Eagle Bank Arena on the campus of George Mason University. Tickets are not required for the ceremony and all TJ families are invited.
For those unable to attend, it will be livestreamed at this link.
Below is the final exam schedule for our underclassmen this year. Each day will be a half day that lasts from 8:40-11:55 a.m. (except Friday, see below). Bus transportation will be provided at the release time. If you transport your own child, please make arrangements to pick them up on time as teachers will be busy grading and we do not have staff available to supervise large groups of students until the end of the work day at 4:00.
Monday, June 12 – Periods 1 and 2
Tuesday, June 13 – Periods 3 and 4
Wednesday, June 14 – Periods 5 and 6
Thursday, June 15 – Periods 7 and makeups
Friday, June 16 – 2-hour day (class time - 8:40-10:40 a.m.)
As the year comes to an end, we'd like to recognize the following staff members for reaching these years of service milestones with FCPS! We appreciate all you do for our kids and TJ!
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Years of Service
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Staff Member
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30 Years
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Andrea Smith
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25 Years
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John Laffey
Leo Resquin
Myra Spoden
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20 Years
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Stephen Ballard
Erinn Harris
Ashley Jones
Marianne Razzino
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15 Years
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Kerry Hamblin
Cynthia Hawkins
Kumja Lee
Alouf Jirari Scavotto
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10 Years
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Rocio Rayas Abundis
Mian Chen
Brian Field
Ming Liu
Kacey McAleer
Josephine Porcelli
Adam Smolinsky
Ann Tipton
Tung Tran
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5 Years
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Andre De Megret
Sara Genetin
Kathy Juster
Kathy Morrow
Laureen Nelson
Duc Nguyen
Volita Russell
Tam Vo
Margaret Wilson
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We also would like to recognize mathematics teacher Ms. Myra Spoden who is retiring at the conclusion of the school year. We thank you for everything you have done for the students and TJ, and wish you well as you embark on your new adventure!
We also wish to recognize and give best wishes to Ms. Susan Martinez, school counselor, and Mr. Bob McCormick, safety and security specialist, who retired earlier in the school year.
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 On May 22, Class of 2023 seniors' year-long research projects culminated in the annual Thomas Jefferson Symposium to Advance Research (tjSTAR) seminar. Meticulously organized by students from the tjSTAR committee, it featured senior groups assigned to various classrooms presenting their research to their peers, who signed up for the presentation they wanted to see.
In addition it featured the return of parents being able to attend their child's presentation for the first time since pre-COVID tjSTAR. Seniors were rewarded for all their hard work with lunch from Panera and a gift bag of tjSTAR merchandise.
Thank you to the tjSTAR Committee and its sponsors for all your hard work in making the event a success. And a big thanks to the TJ Partnership Fund for their generous grant that made the event possible!
 TJ students joined by all FCPS students who competed at Regeneron International Science Fair
Four different TJ students won honors at the prestigious Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair that took place on May 19. Here is a list of the winners and their category.
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Shinyoung Jeon - Second Award in Systems Software for her project MoodBox: Vocal Screening for Depression and Gamified Relief.
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Mihika Dusad and Aryaman Khanna Third Award in Engineering Technology: Statistics and Dynamics for their project HypeFL: A Novel Blockchain-Based Architecture Using Federated Learning and Cooperative Perception for a Fully Connected Autonomous Vehicle System.
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Rohan Kalahasty, Third Award in Robotics and Intelligent Machines for his project Hybrid Plasticity: Adaptive, Brain-Like Artificial Intelligence via Prefrontal Cortex Inspired Meta-Learning.
For more information, please view the FCPS release. For a complete list of winners visit the Society for Science website.
Fairfax County Public Schools has recognized the 20 TJ seniors (out of 36 total in the district) who earned National Merit Scholarships!
Read more about the winners, as well as their potential future career field in this article
 TJ held its annual Techstravaganza event on May 13. Techstravaganza is a free, hands-on STEM activity fair for elementary and middle school students open to all members of the public, that attracts thousands of visitors from the DMV area each year.
Organized by TJ club Tomorrow's Women in Science and Technology (TWIST) whose goal is to encourage students from diverse and low-income backgrounds to pursue STEM subjects.
At Techstravaganza there were dozens of booths that allowed kids to participate in fun activities, while also learning some key STEM principles.
Please enjoy the photo gallery of some of the fun above!
 Top photos are from PTSA Staff Appreciation Lunch. Bottom photos are from SGA Staff Appreciation Breakfast
Both the TJ PTSA and the Student Government Association (SGA) showed their appreciation for the hard-working members of the TJ Staff with appreciation meals during the month of May.
On May 19, the SGA provided breakfast, giving staff members a kick start to their day!
On May 24, the PTSA provided a cultural lunch, with food from nearly every continent available for the staff to feast on!
The TJ Staff thanks the SGA and the PTSA for the meals and certainly feels appreciated!
 TJ Energy Systems students after they did simulated plane crash investigation
Students in the energy systems class had the opportunity to put their analytical skills to the test while investigating a simulated aircraft crash scene. Based off the 1968 crash of a Braniff Airlines Lockheed Electra, students had the opportunity to diagram a wreckage field, analyze actual reports from the crash and arrive at their own conclusions to the cause.
Using their knowledge of turboprop engines and testing wings in the wind tunnel, they reconstructed the whirl mode failure that led to the crash. In the field, they applied a datum search using observation and metal detecting to recover fragments and unravel the mystery of the accident.
 The afternoon of May 26, TJ students had the opportunity to let loose at the annual J-Day celebration. Part field day, part fundraiser, TJ students had the opportunity to participate in activities both indoor and outdoor, sell and eat food, and raise a little money for their various clubs.
No activity or food cost more than $15 with most between $1 and $5. Thanks to a SGA subsidy, several activities, such as Sponge Wars, the outdoor inflatables and others were completely free!
Please enjoy the photo gallery above that shows some of the fun!
In each newsletter we want to give some quick shout outs to TJ staff, students, teams, and alumni.
- The TJ Scholastic Bowl Virginia State Champions were honored last month by the Fairfax Board of Supervisors. The photo of above features members of the team, along with Coach Julia Fu and Director of Student Activities Dylan Forshay.
- Congratulations to the TJ Computer Teams for successful performances in their final two competitions of the season. At the UPenn Invitational in April, TJ teams took first and second place in the advanced division, and first and third place in the classic division. At the American Computer Science League (ACSL) Junior Division Final Invitational Round in May, TJ took second place. Thirteen different students earned medals at the tournament.
- In the May News You Choose newsletter we inadvertently left off some of the US Presidential Scholarship Semifinalists. The complete list from TJ included seniors Emma Cox, Mira Kim, Tejawi Koduru and Lynn Tao. Congratulations for that honor! Finalists were notified by email.
 Members of various TJ Academic Teams at their celebration banquet.
- The TJ Academic Boosters held their Academic Team celebration on May 19 to honor all the success the various TJ Academic Teams had over the 2022-23 school year. Please visit the TJ Academic Boosters webpage for more pictures and a video slideshow of the event.
 
- Congratulations go out to our spring athletic teams for very successful seasons. As well, we want to congratulate our seniors who have signed to play sports in college! Above is a collage of photos from all the spring sports Senior Nights, along with a picture from Signing Day.
The following message is from the TJ PTSA:
Calling all TJ Parents (of any class)!
Parents of all classes are invited to help the TJ PTSA host the BEST All Night Grad Party ever for our seniors!
The All Night Graduation Party (ANGP) is a tradition at TJ to provide a safe, fun, drug-free, and alcohol-free celebration for our graduating class. Essentially an all-night lock-in, the ANGP provides our newly minted graduates with six hours (11 PM to 5 AM the next morning) of fun-filled activities including games, food, entertainment, raffles, and a casino!
We are expecting nearly 400 of our seniors to attend! And we literally need hundreds of parent volunteers to work in shifts throughout the night to make it a safe and successful event. Please join in the fun and sign up today for one of the volunteer shifts! Scroll through the pages to get to the open slots later in the evening. Thank you so much for your support!
TJPTSA All Night Grad Party Committee: 2023 ANGP Volunteer Needs (signupgenius.com)
From the Safety and Security Office, here are a few reminders about arrival and dismissal procedures here at TJ:
- For all Kiss and Ride arrivals, students need to be dropped off in the back of the school. Students should only enter through doors 7 and 9. When entering the property please turn left and proceed to the back of the building.
- The first class starts at 8:40, All students should have arrived by that time. If students arrive at 8:40 or later, they are required to enter through the front office and receive a late pass. Please pull through the visitor lot and drop off your student there. Please then proceed off the property by exiting up the access road to Little River Turnpike (Route 236).
- At dismissal, all students are to be picked up in the back parking lot. Students being picked up are to exit through doors 7 and 9, and not out of side doors or classrooms.
- Please do not park or enter the staff parking lot area. In addition, do not enter or park in the surrounding neighborhoods and businesses. Those are private property and are not controlled by TJ.
- Please do not make U-turns on Braddock Rd.
- All of these rules are for the safety and security of students, staff, and families.
The school health room is reminding parents and guardians that all medication stored in the health room must be picked up no later than the student dismissal time on the last day of school (June 16). Medication left in the health room after that time will be destroyed.
It is school policy that medications must be picked up by the parent or guardian. Medication cannot be sent home with your student. However, with parent or guardian permission, a high school student may transport over-the-counter medications to and from the school health room.
If your student will be enrolled in a summer program sponsored by Fairfax County Public Schools, the existing medication authorization form(s) may be used for the summer program, but you will need to pick up the medication on the last day of school and deliver the medication and completed forms to the summer learning site on the first day of the summer program. Please let the health room know if you would like a copy of the form(s) when you arrive to pick up the medication.
 Every athlete needs a new athletic physical every school year so save some time and come out to TJ on June 7, 2023 and support the TJ Athletic Training Program. Need a BOY SCOUT or CAMP PHYSICAL at the same time? No problem, just make sure you bring all the forms with you on June 7. The physical is $50 for pre-registered students. All money goes to support TJ Athletic Training. FCPS Athletic Trainers get $0 from the county for supplies.
To Register: https://forms.gle/AMw6vbirXYdWD2yn9
Volunteers (MD, DO, PAC, NP, RN, PT) are still needed to run physicals. We need parents to help make the sports physicals a successful event. Your expertise and a few hours of your time will greatly benefit our TJ athletes. Students are also encouraged to sign up and get community service hours! Dinner will be provided for the volunteers.
Email Dr. Murphy if you can volunteer or have questions. Heather.Murphy@fcps.edu
The following information is courtesy of TJ Athletics
Sports Preview Night June 7 - 6:30-8:00 p.m. at TJHSST
- Come visit and meet all our athletic coaches and some student-athletes. Coaches can answer information regarding off-season working, paperwork, registration, time commitments, etc.
- This event is also a great time to come learn more about the Colonial Athletic Booster Club and purchase some awesome TJ merchandise.
 Paperwork for the 2023-24 School Year
Fall Sports will start on Monday, July 31 (Golf Thursday 7/27). Physicals and registration for football, cheerleading, field hockey, volleyball, and cross country will be due on Friday July 28.
All physicals should be mailed to TJ c/o Heather Murphy 6560 Braddock Road Alexandria, VA 22312. Please do not email forms. Students can also give their physical to coach on their first day of summer conditioning. All forms must be dated after May 1, 2023. A new form is needed every school year.
Athletic Forms: https://tjsths.rschoolteams.com/page/3168
Athletic Registration: https://tjhsst-ar.rschooltoday.com/
Legacy studios will contact members of the Class of 2024 via email SOON to alert them that the senior portrait scheduling site is open for July sittings. Check your Spam folders as sometimes their emails are sent to Spam.
Portrait sitting dates can be located here. If you can’t make the July sittings, we will have portraits here at TJHSST in the fall, but we are only scheduling for the summer at this time.
Have questions? Contact Legacy Studios customer care service:
· Call: 716-512-6336
· Email: customercare@legacystudios.com
Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology is on Twitter! Visit @TJHSST_Official for news, upcoming events, reminders of important deadlines, and updates of all the fun activities going on at the school.
BREAKING NEWS! @OfficialTJHSST our new Instagram page will be making its debut at graduation!
Be sure to give us a follow!
June 5-6: Senior Final Exams for Humanities, World Languages and Makeups
June 8: Graduation Rehearsal for Class of 2023 in TJ Gym 1 at 9:30 a.m.
June 10: Class of 2023 Graduation - EagleBank Arena 7:30 p.m.
June 12-15: Underclassman Final Exams (half day, students released at 11:55 a.m.)
June 16: Last Day of School (2-hour day, students released at 10:40 a.m.)
June 26: TJHSST Summer Programming Begins
August 17: New student orientation in morning (specific times still to be determined)
August 21: First day of 2023-24 school year.
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