Category Archives: News

News about what’s happening. This is not newsletter archives.

2021-02 Congratulations TJ Band Student Musicians!

The TJ Band Program congratulates all the student musicians who recently auditioned for District Band! Virtual auditions, conducted in late January, included scales, a prepared piece, and sight-reading–as well as the technical oddities associated with creating and submitting audition recordings. We are delighted to announce that 30 of our students were selected for the 2020-21 All-District Bands for District XI, including four who are principal players in their sections. A total of 15 musicians are now eligible to audition for All-State Band and Orchestra. District Band and Senior Regional Orchestra did not meet in person this year; competition remains fierce, and it is an impressive achievement to have qualified in such a talented field. We are so proud of your hard work and musicianship!

DISTRICT XI CONCERT BAND:
Cierra Min – Clarinet
Arthur Ding – Alto Saxophone
Sean McInnis – Tenor Saxophone
Zoe Winston – Trumpet
Spencer Miller – Trumpet
Erik Winston -Trumpet
Rick Yoon – Trumpet

DISTRICT XI SYMPHONIC BAND:
Michelle Lin – Flute
Lily Walters – Flute
Maggie Clarke – Flute
Mira Kim – Clarinet (PRINCIPAL)
Daniel Fu – Clarinet
Mikhail Mints – Clarinet
Elliot Lee – Clarinet
Yoo-Bin Kwon – Clarinet
Shreyas Mayya – Clarinet
Aditi Chandrashekar – Bass Clarinet (PRINCIPAL)
James Barker – Bass Clarinet
Prashanth Kumaran – French Horn
Katie-May Kretzer – French Horn
Senna Keesing – French Horn
Vance Kreider – Trumpet
Anais Beauvais – Trumpet
Justin Paul – Trumpet
Ben Chang – Tenor Trombone
Vagul Mahadevan – Tenor Trombone
Steven Lu – Euphonium (PRINCIPAL)
Addison Greenfeld – Euphonium
William McLaughlin – Tuba
Ryan Payne – Percussion (PRINCIPAL)

The following students are eligible to audition for All-State Band/Orchestra; while the in-person rehearsals and concert have been cancelled, students selected for the All-State ensembles will have the opportunity to participate in virtual events and master classes in the spring.

VIRGINIA ALL-STATE AUDITION ELIGIBLE:
Michelle Lin – Flute
Mira Kim – Clarinet (qualified through Senior Regional Orchestra)
Daniel Fu – Clarinet
Mikhail Mints – Clarinet
Aditi Chandrashekar – Bass Clarinet
James Barker – Bass Clarinet
Prashanth Kumaran – French Horn (SRO)
Katie-May Kretzer – French Horn
Vance Kreider – Trumpet
Anais Beauvais – Trumpet
Ben Chang – Tenor Trombone
Vagul Mahadevan – Tenor Trombone
Evan Ling – Bass Trombone (SRO)
Steven Lu – Euphonium
Ryan Payne – Percussion

2021-02-06 Latest Return to School Info from FCPS

From the FCPS email sent on 2/3/2021

Dear FCPS Community,

I am excited to share that the Fairfax County School Board has given us unanimous consensus to proceed with the Return to School plan and we will begin bringing student groups and staff back for in-person instruction on February 16. Watch video on Return to School

Based on the latest guidelines from the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE), FCPS will begin bringing back our youngest learners, students with disabilities, and English learners first. Under the updated plan, all students will have the opportunity to return to school buildings for at least two days a week by March 16.

Dates of Return for Student Groups

Feb. 16 Group 1-4: Select CTE and Special Education

Feb. 23 Group 5: PreK, Kindergarten and Special Education

March 2 Group 8: Grades 8, 9, 12 and Poe, Glasgow, Holmes – Grade 8

March 9 Group 6: Grades 1-2 & Group 8: Grades 7, 10, 11 and Poe, Glasgow, Holmes – Grade 6-7

March. 16 Group 7: Grades 3-6

The updated plan meets the research-based, scientific decision-making protocols outlined by the VDH and Fairfax County Health Department. We are implementing the five health and safety mitigation strategies in our schools and using Safety Teams to monitor adherence to the mitigation strategies.

Even though community numbers and transmission rates remain in the highest category, FCPS is proving successful at keeping our own school communities in the lowest category possible, and therefore as safe as possible, through effectively  implementing the five mitigation strategies across our schools.

We have also been working to hire classroom monitors. We have hired 74 percent of the monitors we need and are continuing to advertise to fill the remaining positions. 

We continue to work with the Fairfax County Health Department and Inova Health System to offer COVID-19 vaccine to staff. To date, 90% of FCPS staff have signed up or scheduled appointments to receive the first dose of the vaccine. While the vaccine is an important mitigation measure against the spread of COVID, it is not a criteria for returning to school under the VDOE/VDH model.

All schools will transition to a new bell schedule on February 16. The bell schedule adjustment is necessary due to social distancing requirements which limit capacity on school buses. The bell schedule change will apply to both in-person learning as well as students who are doing full-time virtual learning.

I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of our principals, teachers, and staff. FCPS believes in-person instruction is best to meet our students’ academic, social, and emotional needs. We have a robust plan to implement mitigation measures including education, monitoring, feedback, and support to ensure schools remain a safe place for learning. We are looking forward to welcoming staff and students back in our school buildings.
 

Sincerely, 

Scott S. Brabrand
Superintendent

2021-04-22 Yoga (online) – Until April 22

Yoga is back! Join others in the TJ community for livestreamed yoga with PE teacher Mr. Arthur at 5-6 PM on Mondays and Thursdays, or on demand, both at https://www.twitch.tv/drarthur1. (You can follow his channel to get notification reminders.)

Yoga will be held February 22 through April 22, with a week off for Spring Break.

Congrats to our yoga mat drawing winners from among the fall yoga survey respondents: Sean Nguyen ’21 and Gabriel Witkop ’22. Thank you to the TJ Partnership Fund for supporting Health & Wellness at TJ by donating these mats from Maiya (founded by a TJ alum).

2021-02-01 Nominating Committee Volunteers Needed

Deadline to apply is Februaray 19, 2021.

We will hold PTSA Officer (Executive Committee) elections in May ideally, in June as a worst case scenario. A Nominating Committee is required to compile and recommend the slate of officer candidates (one candidate per position). The 5-member Nominating Committee will be elected by the membership in an online vote before the end of February (date may change if we don’t have enough volunteers).

If you are interested in nominating yourself as a candidate to serve on the Nominating Committee, please read the following requirements and then fill out the TJ PTSA Nominating Committee Candidate Self-Nomination Form linked at the bottom.

  • To serve as a volunteer of the TJ PTSA, you must be a member of the TJ PTSA.
  • Experience with PTA/PTSAs is not required but highly recommended.
  • Involvement in the TJ community as a parent, student, faculty/staff is also highly desired. Having volunteered in the past is a plus.
  • Familiarity with the TJ PTSA Bylaws, specifically the sections regarding officers and their responsibilities, elections, and the nominating committee, is good.
  • Familiarize yourself with the VA PTA training material for Nominating Committees and Elections. Our process is tailored a little bit (we vote online with ezvoteonline.com rather than in person at meetings due to COVID), but it is otherwise very close.
  • Be willing to devote a fair amount of time during March (or as soon as you are elected to the Nominating Committee) to conduct a search for Officer candidates. You will have to evaluate and interview multiple applicants, and then as a committee recommend one candidate per officer position. You will have resources from last year’s Nominating Committee to use, such as questions for the candidates, self-nomination form, etc. and you’ll get technical help from the EC as needed.
  • You will need to present your slate of officer candidates for the general membership to vote on. Self-nominations will be accepted for the officer positions as well, after the slate is reported.
  • The slate must be presented by the end of March to give the membership 30 days to consider the candidates prior to elections in May.
  • At that point you have fulfilled your responsibilities and the committee is disbanded.

If you’ve read all of the above and are still willing to serve, thank you!

Please fill out this TJ PTSA Nominating Committee Candidate Self-Nomination Form.

The form indicates when the self-nomination period will close; we may have to extend it if we don’t get the minimum number of self-nominations.

Bylaws Reference

For reference, here are the Bylaws sections related to the Nominating Committee:

Article 4 Section 11: The members of the nominating committee for officers of a local PTA/PTSA shall be elected by the general membership.

Article 6 Section 3: Nominating committee
a. Each member of the nominating committee must be a member of this local PTA/PTSA.

b. The nominating committee shall consist of five (5) members, who shall be elected by the members of this local PTA/PTSA at their regular general membership meeting at least two (2) months prior to the election of officers. The committee shall elect its own chairman.

c. The nominating committee shall nominate an eligible person for each office to be filled, except the office of president, and report its nominees to the members at a regular general membership meeting at least thirty (30) days prior to the general membership election meeting. At the general membership election meeting additional nominations may be made from the floor.

d. Only those persons who have signified their consent to serve, if elected, shall be nominated for or elected to such office. It is understood that the president-elect, by accepting the nomination is agreeing to automatically succeed to the office of president at the end of his/her term as president-elect.

2021-01-31 TJ Reflections Participants Advance

We just had some news about how our participants are advancing in the program. Just to go back to the beginning of the program, we had art submissions in four categories: Photography, Literature, Music Composition and Visual Arts. 

Each student that scored the highest at the school level, went on to be judged at the Fairfax County Level. 

All four of the TJ students received Outstanding Interpretation at the County Level and went on to be judged at the Northern Virginia District Level. 

We just heard that two students received Outstanding Interpretation at the District Level and are now being judged at the State Level. 

State Level Results – Pending (Results in Late Feb/Mar)

Northern Virginia District Level

Outstanding Interpretation
Literature – Trini Rogando “Expanding Matter”   
Music Composition – Ethan Caldwell “A Journey Through Life”

Fairfax County Level

Outstanding Interpretation 
Literature – Trini Rogando “Expanding Matter”
    Music Composition – Ethan Caldwell “A Journey Through Life”
    Visual Arts – Sehyun Choi “Intertwined Hopes”
    Photography – Micaela Wells “Life Reflected in a Droplet”

Fairfax County Level

Outstanding Interpretation
Literature – Trini Rogando “Expanding Matter”
    Music Composition – Ethan Caldwell “A Journey Through Life”
    Visual Arts – Sehyun Choi “Intertwined Hopes”
    Photography – Micaela Wells “Life Reflected in a Droplet”

2021-02 2021 TJ Scholastic Regional Winners

In the most competitive environment ever, TJ students produced more Gold Keys than every before, and some students had multiple Golds. Those students with Gold Keys will now be forwarded to the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers for national award consideration. There will be local recognition at the 2021 Online Awards Ceremony to be announced by our local sponsor, Writopia Lab DC.

Gold Key/American Voices nominee: Lyat Melese (10)

Gold Keys: Teja Buddhavarapu (12), Mulan Pan (10), Parnika Saxena (12), Zia Sun (12), Sara Elanchezhian (10), Thanisha Chowdhury (9), Annika Duneja (11), Sagar Gupta (11), Michelle Lin (11), Zoe Lu (12), Isabelle (Trini) Rogando (11), Lynn Tao (10), Aileen Zhao (9)

Silver Keys: Rhea Goswami (11), Didi Elysad (12), Andy Chen (12), Grace Ko (10), Nuha Mohammed (12), Prasidha Padmanabhan (10), Arya Adake (11), Isabella Cai (9), Thanisha Chowdhury (9), Bella Chung (12), Jessica Feng (10), Yoo-Bin Kwon (11), Jessica May (10), Angelina Richter (9), Isabelle (Trini) Rogando (11), Amrita Sahu (11), Lillian Sun (11), Jessica Wang (10), Aileen Zhao (9)   

Honorable Mentions: Rhea Goswami (11), Lauren Fisher (10), Joseph Dodson (12), Arjun Dhumne (12), Andrew Chen (12), Ebba Cha (9), Jennifer Abraham (12), Aaliya Hussain (12), Lauren Nathan (12), Andrew Shi (10), Sadhana Thirumazhusai (12), Rushil Umaretiya (10), Nivedha Vaidy (12), Chabeli Yumang 12), Ethan Caldwell (10), Ebba Cha (9), Emily Chen (11), Thanish Chowdhury (9),Tammy Ding (11), Michelle Du (11), Sagar Gupta (11), Alex Huang (11), Grace Huang (11), Kyuree Kim (11),  Kyra Li (11), Yeefay Li (11), Michelle Lin (11), Zoe Lu (12), Krisha Pahwa (10), Isabelle (Trini) Rogando (11), Sreenidhi Sankarara (12), Sruthi Sankarara (11), Andrew Shi (10), Dhanbee Suh (10), Lynn Tao (10), Jessica Wang (10), Chabeli Yumang (12)

Writing Portfolio: Bella Chung (12), Honorable Mention

2021-02 TJ’s Marching Band Wants YOU! (UPDATED 2020-02-06)

UPDATE: 2021-03-01 MARCHING BAND IS FULL. PLEASE TRY NEXT YEAR

UPDATE: 2020-02-06

TJ’s marching band is holding a spring mini season! Students don’t have to be in a band class to participate this spring. Musicians and color guard, including beginners, are welcome!

The official enrollment form for the TJ Marching Band’s Spring mini-season is now active.

Due 11:59 PM, Friday, February 5.Mini-season calendar and info sheet (from Jan 20)

ORIGINAL POST:

Can’t wait to get back to activities this spring? Neither can we–and we’d love to have you with us!

Who we are: TJMC–the Thomas Jefferson Marching Colonials! TJHSST’s marching band. Around 120 winds, percussion, and color guard members, and one of the most fun and supportive communities at TJ.

What we do: In a typical year, TJMC performs at football games, as well as marching (and winning major awards!) at band competitions across Virginia and the Eastern US. This year, we’re having a spring mini-season: some of us will be performing as a small pep band at football games, with the full ensemble rehearsing a portion of our fall show for exhibitions later this spring. Then we’ll be back in the autumn with the full production!

What’s the commitment? For this spring’s mini season, you don’t have to be enrolled in curricular band to join TJMC. For the rehearsal schedule, fee information, and other useful stuff, check out this link. 

What safety measures are in place? Rehearsals and performances will be outdoors; we’ll only use the building for storage, bathroom trips, and properly distanced shelter in case of inclement weather. Any rooms we use will be sanitized before and after we use them, too. All participants will wear masks, and so will their instruments! FCPS and the Band Boosters are supplying bell covers, woodwind bags, and other safety gear, in addition to lanyards for holding masks when not in use. Drill and choreography (the movements of our show) are all written to keep students at least six feet apart while performing, and we will maintain distance even when taking breaks.

What’s in it for me? This close-knit group brings you a healthy dose of outdoor exercise (marching is a great workout!), plus all the benefits of performing music with a group. Give it a try!

Ready to come along?

Let us know you’re interested! Fill out the Preliminary Interest Form so we’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the enrollment forms open up!

Have questions or concerns? Contact Mr. Ballard, TJHSST’s Director of Bands.  You can also contact TJMC at info@tjbands.org for more information. In the meantime, check out our website at http://tjbands.org/our-bands/tjmc-2/ for an info sheet, the show reveal trailer, video of past performances, and other fun stuff!

2021-02-01 Imposter Syndrome: Stories From TJ Alumni (video)

Watch the video from Sean Nguyen and TJ Today: “Imposter syndrome—a general feeling of inadequacy that persists— affects anyone regardless of success. Alumni, now in their 20s and 30s, share their experiences with Imposter Syndrome before, at, and after TJ. More importantly, they articulate how to minimize self-doubt and lack of confidence through their first-hand accounts. For students curious to learn their own degree of Imposter Syndrome, this is the official clinical imposter syndrome test.”