OPINION:
On Nov. 4, leaders of Fairfax County Public Schools emailed parents to brag that district students outperformed their peers across Virginia on the SAT.
The class of 2026 averaged 1,184, which is 71 points above the Virginia average of 1,113 and 139 points above the global average of 1,045. The letter linked in the email claimed that the scores “show the power and promise of public education” by surpassing state and global averages on the SAT.
Let us start with the score itself. A score of 1,184 leaves much to be desired. Fewer colleges are test-optional each year, and Virginia’s top public universities enroll students who score far higher. Even at test-optional schools, those who submit scores land well above 1,184.
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At the University of Virginia, the middle 50% of enrolled first-year students who submitted scores fell between roughly 1,410 and 1,540. At Virginia Tech, the range was roughly 1,280 to 1,450.
District leaders also forget their guiding light, “equity,” when it suits them. They credit themselves and the power of public education for their students’ higher averages while ignoring the resource gap between Fairfax County and the rest of Virginia.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, median household income in Fairfax County is $153,637. That is 65% higher than Virginia’s median of $93,170 and 90% higher than the national median of $80,734.
More Fairfax families can afford SAT tutors and specialized classes than families elsewhere in Virginia or the nation. Given that head start, the gap between Fairfax students and the rest of the state looks smaller than one would expect.
It is telling that, in a message to parents about test scores, a district with “equity” at the center of its strategic plan never once mentions resource inequities. Instead, Superintendent Michelle Reid said, “These results reflect the excellence of an FCPS education and the extraordinary commitment of our students, educators, families, and all of Team FCPS.”
She thanks families but never acknowledges the resources that many of them have. That framing credits the district’s own excellence for the scores and implies that districts with lower averages are simply doing a worse job.
Leaders also failed to mention that since 2019, the district’s average SAT score has fallen 34 points, from 1,218 to 1,184. Over the same period, public school enrollment has dropped by 17,000 students, roughly 9%. District leaders blame declining birth rates and the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement, but the numbers on families leaving tell a different story.
Homeschooling and private school enrollment have surged as academic performance has declined. In 2026, for example, about 33,484 students attended private schools in Fairfax County, more than double the 2019 total of 14,500, according to regional tracking data.
In other words, families with the means to leave appear to be pulling their children out of a public school district in serious decline.
Inside the district, the contrast in academics and household income is starker still. According to the Virginia Department of Education, 20% of FCPS students failed their reading and math Standards of Learning tests in the 2025-2026 school year. Among economically disadvantaged students, the failure rates were nearly double: 39% in reading and 38% in math.
In science, 24% of all students failed, compared with 42% of economically disadvantaged students. Even in one of the wealthiest counties in America, a student’s household income still tracks closely with academic results.
It is true that Fairfax students outscore their Virginia peers on the SAT, but a letter that celebrates only the flattering comparison says little about how well the system actually educates its students. FCPS serves one of the wealthiest communities in the country, yet its SAT average has fallen since 2019, enrollment has shrunk, private school enrollment has more than doubled, and economically disadvantaged students fail state tests at nearly twice the rate of the division as a whole.
Parents deserve more than a victory lap. They deserve an honest accounting of how scores have changed, how much of the district’s advantage comes from household resources rather than classroom instruction, and what leaders are doing for the students struggling most.
A district that puts “equity” at the center of its strategic plan should be the first to ask those questions.
What we get is “the power and promise of public education.” Here is the fine print. The power: an SAT average that has slipped 34 points in one of the wealthiest counties in America. The promise: Start with a household income 65% above the state median, and you too can beat the state SAT average.
• Stephanie Lundquist-Arora is a contributor to Independent Women’s Features, The Federalist and the Washington Examiner, a mother in Fairfax County, Virginia, an author, and the Fairfax chapter leader of the Independent Women’s Network.
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