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Dear TJHSST Families,
Our teachers are officially back on campus! They will be spending the next week hard at work preparing classrooms and lessons for an incredible first day of school on Monday, August 24.
In this week's newsletter, you will find key updates and reminders, including:
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New Student Orientation & Returning Student Open House: Coming up on Thursday, August 20. Please refer to the E-Notify message sent out on Wednesday, August 12, for full details.
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FCPS Updates: Important information regarding the new student device requirement, as well as instructions on how to download the official FCPS app.
If you ever have questions or aren't sure who to reach out to, please feel free to contact our Director of Communications, Mike Roth. He will gladly assist you or connect you with the right person.
Warm regards,
The TJHSST Team
As mentioned in the E-Notify sent on Wednesday, August 12, our Back-to-School website is now available. It has important deadlines and forms you need to review and fill out to help make our opening weeks a success.
Please be sure to bookmark it as information might be added as it becomes available.
Messages were sent via E-Notify on Wednesday, August 12 about both the New Student Orientation and the optional Returning Student Open House. Please refer to them for full details, but here is a summary of each event.
New Student Orientation
Our New Student Orientation will be held Thursday, August 20 from 8:30-11:45 a.m. Check in begins at 8:30 a.m. with the program starting promptly at 9:00 a.m.
After entering via the Dome at Door 1, printed class schedules will be available outside the auditorium. Pick up your schedule alphabetically by last name, then enter the auditorium for a short program beginning at 9:00 a.m.
Parents/Guardians are welcome to come in and see the information booths that are set up in Gym 1. We will have an optional short parent program in the auditorium from 10:15-10:45 a.m. to give you more information on how you can get involved at TJ and support your student.
Returning Student Open House
If returning students are concerned about finding their way around the building with a new schedule, TJ will be hosting an Open House on Thursday, August 20 from 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
Returning students are welcome to visit TJ and walk their new schedule at any point during that hour. There will also be information booths in Gym 1 featuring representatives from the PTSA, Athletic Boosters, Academic Boosters, Partnership Fund, Technology, Health Room, Parent Liaison, Theatre and Band Boosters, SOSA and Student Services.
Please note that the TJ Open House is optional to attend. Parking will be extremely limited as the new student orientation immediately precedes this event and is first-come first-serve. We cannot guarantee an available parking space on the campus.
If you have any questions about either event, please reach out to TJHSST Director of Communications Mike Roth at mbroth@fcps.edu.
Starting this school year, students may only use FCPS-issued devices for school-related digital activities during the instructional day. This is in accordance with a new School Board requirement, approved on July 16, which states that students may not use personal electronic communication or computing devices, including personal laptops, tablets, smartwatches, smartphones, and similar devices.
Students may only use a personal device if it is required as part of a necessary accommodation in the student's Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 Plan. A principal or the principal’s designee may approve a limited, course-specific exception for students enrolled in a specialized class when the curriculum requires a technology tool or software that isn’t available on a standard FCPS-issued device.
Families can help support this requirement by reminding students to bring their FCPS-issued device each day and use it for all school-related digital activities unless an approved exception applies.
There are a lot of school and FCPS webpages to bookmark, but the FCPS mobile app serves as your central hub!
Check daily meal menus and calendars with no login required, or use one-tap quick links to launch SIS ParentVUE, Schoology, and MySchoolBucks.
Download the FCPS mobile app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
If your student will need to take any medication at school next year—prescription or over-the-counter (OTC)—a completed Medication Authorization Form is required.
You can get the forms:
A signed form is still required even if your child carries their emergency medication (like an inhaler or epinephrine).
This fall, every FCPS student will receive a student identification (ID) card as part of a divisionwide effort to modernize school transportation, improve communication with families, and strengthen student safety while traveling to and from school.
Every student who rides the school bus will need to tap on and tap off the bus every day using their new student ID card. Families can help by reinforcing this new habit with their child.
All students at our school will need to wear their student ID cards throughout the school day. We will be handing out the new student ID cards the first few weeks of school. More details will be shared soon.
Learn more about the new transportation system and student ID cards.
If your child would like to request a parking pass for the 2026–2027 academic year, please complete the form below. Please note that passes will only be issued to students with clear financial accounts. Outstanding obligations include, but are not limited to, unreturned books, course fees, and prior parking tickets.
Please note that student parking procedures have changed for the 2026-27 school year.
Students who purchase a parking pass will be assigned a specific parking spot. Vehicles without a valid parking pass or those parked in the wrong spot will be ticketed. There will be marked spots for staff and visitors throughout the campus.
For any questions or assistance, please contact Associate Principal Betsy Fawsett.
Parking Pass Form
We are looking to grow our TJ Football roster for the 2026–27 school year!
While our preseason officially began on August 3, it’s not too late to join the team. If you have any interest in playing football, being part of a team, and representing TJHSST, we would love to hear from you.
No matter your level of experience, we encourage interested students to reach out and learn more.
Please contact our Head Football Coach, Rachel Worsham, at raworsham@fcps.edu for additional information.
We would love to have you join us and be part of TJ Football!
Go Colonials!
According to the Centers for Disease Control, eating breakfast at school is associated with better attendance rates, fewer missed school days, and better test scores. Studies show that students who eat both school breakfast and lunch tend to have healthier diets than those who don't participate in school meals.
Families who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals can receive breakfast and lunch for their students at no cost or at a reduced cost. This includes more than one-third of FCPS students. Families must complete the Free and Reduced-Price Meals (FRM) application before the start of each school year. Approved applications may also qualify students for additional benefits.
The application for FRM is now available for the 2026-27 school year. Students who were approved for FRM last year are eligible for the first 30 days of school this year (or until a new application is processed). Families should reapply as soon as possible so eligible students continue to receive meals at no cost.
Access the application and view criteria and up-to-date information on the FRM webpage. Families should reach out to their schools with questions or for assistance.
Consent to Share Form (PDF)
If you have children eligible for the Free and Reduced-price meals program, they may also be eligible to participate in other FCPS fee-based programs without paying a fee or by paying a reduced fee.
This would include things that are specified in FCPS Notice 5922. Those are:
- Musical Instrument fees
- Driver Education fees
- Student Parking fees
- Career and Technical Education Certification fees
- Fine Arts fees
- Technology and Engineering Education Material fees
- Online Campus fees
- Advanced Placement fees (after six exams)
- Returned Check fees
You are also eligible to receive information about scholarships, classes and services that are provided by agencies and organizations other than FCPS.
In order to receive the benefits, you have to fill out the Consent to Share Form (please visit the link above), a written agreement allowing FCPS staff to share information about your children's meal eligibility status.
All Fairfax County middle and high school students can get a Student Bus Pass SmarTrip card to ride the Fairfax Connector and Fairfax CUE buses for free! With the pass, fares are free from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, all year. Learn more about the Student Pass and access the application, which can be returned to the front office.
Children 12 and younger ride for free on the Fairfax Connector with a paying adult. Please note that students need to be a resident of Fairfax County to receive a pass.
Need to get in contact with someone at TJ? Here is some commonly requested contact information:
Main Office - 703-750-8300
Attendance Office - thomasjeffersonhigh.attendance@fcps.edu
Student Services - 703-750-8340
Student Activities - 703-750-8333
Security - 703-750-8331
Administration Contact Information
Mr. Michael Mukai - Principal
Ms. Betsy Fawsett - Associate Principal
Mr. Dylan Forshay - Subschool Principal 1
Ms. Yaara Crane - Subschool Principal 2
Ms. Volita Russell - Subschool Principal 3
Mr. Shawn Frank - Subschool Principal 4
Ms. Sara Wright - Director of Student Services
Ms. Leah Conte - Director of Student Activities
Mr. Mike Roth - Director of Communications
For another specific staff member, please use our Staff Directory to find contact information.
Be sure to visit Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology on its official social media channel on Instagram @OfficialTJHSST for pictures and highlights of all the fun events and activities going on at TJ! (Please note that we have discontinued use of our X/Twitter account).
We'd love it if you give us a follow!
August 20 - New Student Orientation (Class of 2030, plus new students from the Class of 2029 joining as sophomores), and Open House for returning students.
August 24 - First day of the 2026-27 school year. Modified Anchor Day with one-hour advisory.
September 3 - Back-to-School Bash after school
September 4-7 - Labor Day Holiday, No School for students and staff
September 11 - Religious or Cultural Observance Day (Rosh Hashanah begins in evening) - school remains in session with normal hours, no activities in evening.
September 14-19 - Homecoming Week
September 21 - Religious or Cultural Observance Day (Yom Kippur), No School for students and staff
October 7 - PSAT and SAT given at TJ
October 12 - School Planning Day, No School for students
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