Justice High School (formerly known as J.E.B. Stuart High School) is a high school in the Lake Barcroft census-designated place, Virginia. The school is part of the Fairfax County Public Schools district. The school has a Falls Church address but is not located within the limits of the City of Falls Church. Per a vote of the county school board, the school was renamed Justice High School effective July 1, 2018.

History

In 1968, the first eight of the JEB Stuart Crew Club travelled to the United Kingdom to participate in the Henley Royal Regatta where they won the Princess Elisabeth Challenge Cup. Instituted in 1946 for public schools in the UK, the PE Challenge Cup was opened to overseas entries in 1964 and JEB Stuart became the third US crew to win the event. In 1997 the school had one computer for every eight students, which changed to one computer for every 1.8 students in 2003. The school has been featured in National Geographic magazine. In 2006, then-principal Mel Riddile, former director of Straight, Inc., drug rehabilitation program for teens, was chosen as the principal of the year by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Riddile moved to T. C. Williams High School in neighboring Alexandria City at the end of the 2005-2006 school year. After 40 years at Stuart, veteran math department chair Stu Singer retired in protest when Stuart administrators dismantled a remedial math program that had given Stuart the highest pass rate in the county. Singer later published a book on the program. Singer labeled the dismantling of this program "education malpractice that can only be described as unconscionable." Math scores plummeted after the reorganization. Other successful programs were also dismantled. Faculty morale fell to the lowest in the county, and many teachers retired or transferred out in protest. In 2014, the district sent a support team to Stuart to help the beleaguered administration. In May 2024, Sean Rolon was named as the next principal of Justice High School, effective June 20. Rolon previously served as an assistant principal at Falls Church High School and McLean High School.

Name and controversy

In 1959 when the school opened, the Fairfax County school board opposed racial integration of its schools, and the name, J. E. B. Stuart High School, reflected the school board's sentiments. In 2015 seniors at the school started a drive to rid Fairfax County Public Schools of names honoring the Confederacy and segregation. So on after, many alumni, including prominent names like actress Julianne Moore and film producer Bruce Cohen, joined a petition asking that the name of the school be changed because the honor to Confederate general J. E. B. Stuart was chosen to defy the movement to desegregate public schools after Brown v. Board of Education. On September 16, 2017, residents of the school area participated in a non-binding vote on new name options, and were able to rank their top three choices. Top choices received five points, second place choices three, and third place choices one. Stuart High School received the most votes. This was heavily concentrated in first-place and seemed to be a polarizing choice. Under District rules, each household was allowed to cast one vote, regardless of the number of members. But regardless of the vote, the board decided to change the name to Justice. Later, some board members expressed concern with the Thurgood Marshall name as a possibility as there was already a Marshall High School in the District, named after George C. Marshall and simply was settled without vote but of one member of the board to Justice High School. It was proposed and finalized. On October 26, 2017, the school board approved the name Justice High School with a 7-4 vote; one board member described this as a compromise name that collectively honored Thurgood Marshall, Barbara Rose Johns, and Louis Gonzaga Mendez, Jr., among others who worked towards justice. The name change was implemented in summer 2018.

Demographics

In 2001, Justice High School had "one of the most ethnically diverse student populations in the country." In September 2015 the student body was 50.3% Hispanic/Latino (any race), 23.4% White, 13.6% Asian, 10.1% Black/African American, 2.4% two or more races, and 0.2% American Indian/Alaska Native.

Notable alumni