Parents organization uncovers Chinese funding to elite Virginia high school

One of the country's most prestigious high schools received $1 million in donations from organizations related to the Chinese government and its military apparatus. That school is Thomas Jefferson High School in Fairfax County, Virginia. A conservative parent organization released reports Tuesday uncovering the relationship between the high school and and the Chinese Communist Party dating back to 2014.

According to the Parents Defending Education (PDE) complaint, Thomas Jefferson High School, which specializes in STEM programs, teamed up with Tsinghua University High School. The school depends on Tsinghua University, which the Department of Defense considers to be a Chinese military university. According to the Pentagon itself, Tsinghua University has several Chinese People's Liberation Army laboratories.

Through this agreement, Thomas Jefferson High School received funding from Tsinghua University, in addition to several other Chinese companies that participate in the Chinese government's international influence and soft power program.

Nicki Neily, president of PDE, told The Washington Examiner that the relationship between the Chinese Communist Party and American universities was already public knowledge, but that it is "frightening to discover that the same problem is occurring in elementary and high schools.”

PDE condemns these associations with interests directly linked to those of the Chinese government. At the center of the allegations is the Ameson Education and Cultural Exchange Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Washington DC. The Chinese company Shirble, which donated half a million dollars, is also wrapped up in the controversy.

In February, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares launched an investigation into Thomas Jefferson High School for alleged racial discrimination in admitting new students. According to Miyares, the new admissions system substantially affected the number of students of Asian origin admitted to the school.

According to Thomas Jefferson High School, the collaboration with Chinese educational institutions is purely based on cooperative initiatives to integrate new methods of study in China that promote STEM fields.