Thomas Jefferson Elementary School

I am both a current teacher and a former student of Thomas Jefferson Elementary School. Growing up in Louisa I know that Louisa Schools did not have the greatest reputation. However I think that much of that reputation was ill-deserved. I have worked in a few divisions now and I think that the quality of the education at TJ (and all of Louisa) is exceptionally high. The division places a great deal of value on education and the quality of teachers (this is evidenced in the fact that Louisa pays more than virtually all the surrounding systems). At TJ we succeed despite all the factors which are supposed to make us fail (poor students, racial mix, old building, overcrowding, etc.). We have made AYP for the No Child Left Behind and we are fully accredited by the state. I can also say that discipline is handled very fairly. I love TJ!
--Submitted by a teacher

As a teacher at Thomas Jefferson Elementary, I see the 'behind the scenes' work of the faculty and staff. We are a well-educated and determined group who work hard for the children we teach. Supporting students and connecting school and community are very important tasks that we face with our hearts as we help students reach their full potential. I am proud to say that I work at TJES for the Louisa County school division. The standards of learning are placed on us by the VA Department of Education and we do our best to see that our students are provided the means to succeed based on those standards. The content we teach flows with the SOLs but I believe we strive to educate the 'whole child.'
--Submitted by a teacher

I feel the quality of education at TJES is sorely lacking, the teachers are inadequate, and the methods by which they center around so much of their curriculum around the Standards of Learning tests is disgraceful. Discipline issues also are handled quite poorly.
--Submitted by Sherrie Perkins, a parent