(Updated at 9:50 a.m. on 3/1/2023) The College Board’s much-debated course on African American identity and history will be available in several Fairfax County high schools this fall as part of a pilot program.
While the state scrutinizes the course, Fairfax County Public Schools plans to offer Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies at the following schools in the next school year, which will begin on Aug. 21:
- Chantilly HS
- Fairfax HS
- Hayfield HS
- McLean HS
- South County
- Westfield HS
- West Potomac HS
- Woodson HS
The course’s availability at each school is “pending student interest/enrollment,” FCPS says.
(Correction: FFXnow was initially told that Centreville High School would be among three schools participating in the pilot, but FCPS says the school won’t be offering the course this coming year.)
According to FCPS, the participating schools “self-selected” for the pilot “based on student and teacher interest.” Principals filled out an interest form sent out by the College Board, which launched the pilot at 60 schools last fall after spending over a decade developing the course.
“FCPS supports offering students multiple opportunities to achieve their academic goals and pursue their academic interests,” an FCPS spokesperson said. “College Board AP courses offer students the opportunity to take nationally recognized curricula with potential college credit, which is why we sought this opportunity for our students.”
A nonprofit focused on access to higher education, the College Board oversees the SAT as well as the AP Program, which provides college-level courses that high school students can take to earn college credits.
The organization released an official framework for its new African American Studies course on Feb. 1, days after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said his state rejected the course as “indoctrination” for its inclusion of LGBTQ studies, the Movement for Black Lives and other topics.
The document has drawn criticism from some educators and advocacy organizations for shifting away from subjects and texts in Florida’s complaint. The College Board has denied letting the state influence the curriculum, though it said it independently chose to remove terms like “intersectionality” that are often “misunderstood, misrepresented, and co-opted as political weapons.”
Virginia is one of four states reviewing the course. Gov. Glenn Youngkin has directed Education Secretary Aimee Rogstad Guidera to see if the course violates his executive order prohibiting “inherently divisive concepts” in public schools, spokesperson Macaulay Porter said.
The order defines divisive concepts as ideas that suggest an individual can be racist or sexist based on their identity or bears responsibility for past oppression, citing “critical race theory” as an example even though the academic theory views racism as a structural issue, rather than an individual one.
Five Fairfax County School Board members, including chair and at-large member Rachna Sizemore-Heizer, sent a letter to Youngkin and Guidera on Tuesday (Feb. 21) urging them “not to impede the teaching” of the AP course.
Also signed by Stella Pekarksy (Sully), Melanie Meren (Hunter Mill), Karl Frisch (Providence) and Laura Jane Cohen (Springfield), the letter says the review continues “an alarming pattern of disregard for the academic needs” of Virginia students after last year’s cancellation of a Black History Month Historical Markers contest for students and proposed changes to history and social studies standards of learning.
“As the entry point for the first enslaved Africans in the colonies and home to the nation’s first Black governor, Virginia has been the backdrop for vital pieces of African-American history,” the school board members wrote. “We have a moral obligation to teach our students about both the darkest times from our past and the inspiring progress we have made as a country.”
One school board member not among the signatories told FFXnow she agrees Youngkin’s administration should support the course, but most board members got the letter less than 24 hours before it was sent to the state, giving them little time to review it and offer feedback.
Notably absent are the board’s two Black members: at-large representative Karen Keys-Gamarra and Mason District Representative Ricardy Anderson.
In a joint statement to FFXnow, Keys-Gamarra and Anderson said their decision to refrain from signing “has nothing to do with our lack of support for the course” or their colleagues’ concerns about the state potentially interfering.
“Rather, we believe we could have benefitted from intentional collaboration with our Board colleagues, other Northern Virginia school boards, and organizations engaged in education work to present a more robust and impactful argument,” they said.
They said the letter lacked “essential historical context that would emphasize the extent of the crisis currently impacting K-12 public education,” including Virginia’s history as the base of the Confederacy and Jim Crow laws that segregated schools.
They also suggested the letter should’ve acknowledged that prohibiting the AP course would affect all students, not just African American and Black students.
“Restricting access to this history, places Virginia students at a distinct competitive disadvantage as their lack of knowledge could impede their ability to excel at the college level and beyond,” Keys-Gamarra and Anderson wrote.
It’s unclear if Virginia can actually bar schools from offering African American Studies, since AP courses are chosen by local school districts, not the state Board of Education. The College Board’s pilot is set to expand this fall and continue through 2024.
An alleged attempt to shoplift a pair of designer sunglasses from Tysons Corner Center’s Nordstrom ended in a fatal police shooting on Wednesday (Feb. 22).
The man shot and killed by two police officers near a mall parking lot that evening was D.C. resident Timothy McCree Johnson, the Fairfax County Police Department reported yesterday (Thursday). He was 37 years old.
According to the department, officers in its Tysons Urban Team went to Nordstrom around 6:30 p.m. after getting a report of a theft.
“Asset protection reported a man was concealing designer sunglasses,” the FCPD said. “An officer observed the man exiting the store near a parking garage. As he exited the store, an anti-theft alarm was activated as he fled.”
As Police Chief Kevin Davis indicated in an initial briefing that night, two officers chased Johnson through the garage, across a parking lot and into a wooded area, where they both fired their guns and hit him once in the chest.
Johnson was transported to a hospital, where he died.
The FCPD says the officers “gave [Johnson verbal] commands to get on the ground.” The officers were both assigned to the Tysons Urban Team, one as a uniformed officer and the other in plainclothes.
One of the officers has been with the department for seven years and the other for eight, according to the FCPD, which says their names will be released within 10 days.
“As per department policy, the officers have been placed on restricted duty status, pending the outcome of the criminal and administrative investigation,” police said.
Criminal and administrative investigations into the use of force are underway. Davis said on Wednesday that police were searching the scene for potential evidence, including any weapon that may have been discarded, but the press release doesn’t indicate whether anything was found.
Davis said the man shot by police was “well known” to local law enforcement in the D.C. region and had “a violent criminal history.”
However, Johnson’s mother has disputed that characterization, telling the Washington Post that he “was trying to get on the right track” after landing in custody for a parole violation. She described him as a father of two, “a loving person” and an artist who planned to go to barber school.
Melissa Johnson told the Post that she believes her son was unarmed when police shot him.
There are no cases involving a Timothy McCree Johnson in Fairfax County General District Court records.
A search of D.C. courts turns up a record for a 2017 civil wrongful death lawsuit involving a defendant with the same name. Stemming from a fatal vehicle crash, the complaint was dismissed after two months.
A federal district court in D.C. also convicted a Timothy McCrae Walker — who was apparently also known as Timothy McCree Johnson — in 2006 on felony gun charges.
The FCPD didn’t immediately respond to FFXnow’s comment request seeking to confirm whether Johnson was the person in those cases.
The Virginia State Police is seeking the public’s help to identify a driver who died after crashing an allegedly stolen car into a cement wall on the I-495 Express Lanes near I-66 this morning (Friday).
The black 2018 Maserati Quattroporte sedan was headed “the wrong way at an excessive rate of speed” when it hit the cement jersey wall in the northbound express lanes at Exit 49 at 4:30 a.m., police said.
“The impact of the crash caused the vehicle to immediately catch fire,” VSP said. “The driver did not survive the crash and the body is being transported to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Manassas for autopsy, examination and positive identification.”
The driver was the only occupant of the sedan, which had been reported stolen in Prince George’s County, according to police.
The state police asks anyone who might’ve seen the Maserati driving south in the northbound toll lanes before the crash or who has information on the driver’s potential identity to call 703-803-0026 or email [email protected].
D.C. Area Sees Record High Temperatures — “It’s official: Thursday is Washington’s warmest Feb. 23 on record and one of the toastiest afternoons so early in the year. The high temperature at Reagan National Airport hit 81 degrees, breaking the previous record of 78 degrees set on Feb. 23, 1874…The high was 80 degrees at Dulles, surpassing the previous record of 77 degrees on Feb. 23, 2017.” [Capital Weather Gang]
Dulles Toll Road Ramp to Close Overnight in Tysons — “The ramp from eastbound Dulles Toll Road/Airport Access Road (Route 267) to northbound I-495 (Capital Beltway) is scheduled to close during overnight hours beginning on or about this Friday night, Feb. 24 through early morning, Monday, March 12. This ramp closure is necessary for crews to demolish the eastern section of the bridge from northbound I-495 to eastbound Dulles Toll Road” [VDOT]
Man Arrested for Assault in Herndon — “A Herndon man was arrested for assault on Saturday in connection with an altercation that occurred at a residence in the 600 block of Dulles Park Court, according to the weekly crime report.” The 26-year-old man has been charged with “aggravated assault (strangulation), abduction, preventing a call to emergency services, and assault.” [Patch]
State Bill Expands Alcohol Permits at Dulles Airport — “The legislative tweak, which extends mixed-beverage carrier licenses to financial institutions…will allow McLean-based Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) to serve more than cranberry juice, soda and tea when it opens its long-awaited lounge at Dulles International Airport later this year, and, later, its Capital One Landing at Reagan National Airport.” [Washington Business Journal]
Tysons Old Navy Gets New Home — “Get a jump start on your spring wardrobe and celebrate the grand opening of Old Navy’s NEW location at Tysons Corner Center on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 10AM. The first 100 visitors will receive a free tote bag and the first 200 visitors will receive $15 off a $75 purchase!” [Tysons Corner Center/Facebook]
Stray Guinea Pigs Found at Lorton Park — “A person was walking their dogs at the Laurel Hill Equestrian Center when they saw a ‘tiny black and white animal.’ After searching through the thorny blackberry bushes for nearly an hour, they caught 14 guinea pigs, according to Fairfax County Animal Shelter.” [ABC7]
Metro Proposes Design Change for New Trains — “Metro is exploring a drastic change to its upcoming new 8000-series trains: an open gangway. Open gangway trains have no doors between cars, allowing riders to freely move through parts of or the entire length of the train. It can improve train capacity, and provide more space for people who use wheelchairs and people with bikes, strollers, or luggage.” [DCist]
Local Companies Make “Best Places to Work” List — “Twenty-eight Fairfax County-headquartered companies placed on Virginia Business magazine’s 13th annual Best Places to Work list. In all, 41 of the 100 companies on the list have a presence in Fairfax County.” Herndon’s SmartEdge IT LLC topped the small employers list, while Fairfax-based MBP came in second for large employers. [FCEDA]
Vacant Annandale Bank Building Draws Interest — “There is ‘lots of interest’ in two vacant spaces in the former Bank of America building at 7220 Columbia Pike in Annandale, says real estate agent Michael Falcone of Century 21 Commercial New Millenium…Falcone says businesses that have expressed interest in the building include a grocery market, banks, cafés, bakeries, and an aerial aerobics company.” [Annandale Today]
It’s Friday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 68 and low of 41. Sunrise at 6:49 am and sunset at 5:57 pm. [Weather.gov]
One person has been taken to the hospital with injuries from a three-vehicle crash on Route 50 in the Merrifield area, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department says.
Units are currently on the scene at the Williams Drive intersection just west of the Gatehouse Plaza shopping center.
Westbound Route 50 (Arlington Blvd) has been closed at Gallows Road, and two right lanes are blocked, according to the fire department, which advises drivers to seek alternate routes.
The FCFRD says the injuries of the person taken to the hospital aren’t considered life-threatening.
Units are on scene of a multi vehicle crash on Route 50 and Williams Drive. Three vehicles involved. One person transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Road closed Rte50 WB at Gallows Rd. Two right lanes blocked. Seek an alternate route. #FCFRD #traffic pic.twitter.com/7kippkYAaa
— Fairfax County Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) February 23, 2023
(Updated at 12:40 p.m.) The National Cherry Blossom Festival is coming to Tysons this year.
Tysons Corner Center will host a family bicycle ride on April 2 as part of D.C.’s annual celebration of its cherry trees at the Tidal Basin, the Tysons Community Alliance (TCA) announced during its official launch event yesterday (Wednesday) at Valo Park.
The alliance — a nonprofit organization replacing the now-defunct Tysons Partnership — has also acquired 20 cherry trees and is now scouting out possible locations around Tysons where they can be planted.
The bicycle ride will last from 8-10 a.m. starting in the Tysons Corner Center Plaza, where there will also be arts and crafts and other family-friendly activities, Karyn Le Blanc, TCA’s acting director of communications and marketing, told FFXnow. More details, including how to register for the ride, are expected in the coming weeks.
Though this year’s ride will stick to the mall’s footprint, future iterations could expand to other parts of Tysons as the area’s network of streets and trails gets built out.
“This will be an annual event, we hope,” Le Blanc said.
The bicycle ride is one of several events that the TCA hopes to bring to Tysons, along with a live music series at The Boro, movie nights and monthly happy hours that will bring “like-minded people together to collaborate on TCA initiatives,” according to the press release.
The alliance offered a preview of upcoming events at yesterday’s launch to highlight its goal of “establishing authentic community connections” in Tysons, a mission that it also hopes to further with a currently open survey on signage and wayfinding.
Initially funded by public investments, the TCA was created in October to promote and advocate for Tysons and help Fairfax County implement its vision for the area, picking up the work started by the Tysons Partnership.
The alliance will operate as a community improvement district (CID), which is like a business improvement district (BID) except it’s supported by both residential and commercial property owners. While BIDs have emerged in D.C. and Arlington County, the only precedent for a CID in the region is Mount Vernon Triangle, according to the TCA.
As part of its official launch, the TCA unveiled a new website at tysonsva.org with an event calendar, news, business resources, development updates and other Tysons-related information. It also shared its social media handles at Twitter and Instagram (@tysons_va), and Facebook and LinkedIn (@TysonsCommunityAlliance).
The TCA’s launch is a “milestone” for Tysons, said Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik, who represents Tysons, and Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn, who helped develop the Tysons Comprehensive Plan in 2010 as a member of the Fairfax County Planning Commission.
“The Tysons Community Alliance really has an opportunity to shape the brand of Tysons, not just for the people who live here, but for the rest of the country and even the world,” Alcorn said, noting that Tysons is about “one generation through a three-generation plan” to have 100,000 residents and 200,000 jobs by 2050.
With 30,124 residents and 107,000 workers, Tysons is making progress toward those goals, according to a presentation shared at the launch event. The presentation noted that, like Fairfax County, Tysons has a “majority-minority” population and the D.C. area’s largest workforce outside the nation’s capital.
TCA leaders acknowledged that much work remains to be done, particularly in terms of housing affordability, accessibility and pedestrian safety. However, the organization wants to stress an overall “spirit of optimism” for Tysons now and into the future, acting CEO Rich Bradley said.
“It’s incredible to witness the momentum at which we’ve already progressed,” Palchik said. “Everyone has been working so diligently to get the TCA to where it is now, and I am confident that we will accomplish a lot in this year alone and into the future.”
Fire at Commercial Building in Merrifield — Fairfax County Fire and Rescue units responded to a building fire in the 2800 block of Dorr Avenue in Merrifield around 6 p.m. yesterday (Wednesday) that reached two alarms. The fire was extinguished after about an hour, and no injuries were reported. [FCFRD/Twitter]
Ribbon Cut on Penn Daw Development — “I was thrilled to speak at the South Alex ribbon cutting ceremony. In 2020 this entire building complex fell victim to a devastating fire, and now just three years later, we are here celebrating the completion of the renovations!” The grocery store Aldi is set to open at the development next week. [Jeff McKay/Twitter]
McLean Students Encourage Donations for Earthquake Relief — “Students at a number of FCPS schools are using their ethical and global citizen Portrait of a Graduate skills to aid those who were affected by a recent devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria…Copper Middle School students, including one who lived in Turkey and another who has family in the region, talked to Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid about how they and others can help those in need, and why they should.” [FCPS]
Poetry Events Coming to Local Parks — “Poet Laureate Danielle Badra will launch a new series of public programming called ‘Poetry in the Parks’ this spring. In close partnership with ArtsFairfax and Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA), Badra begins her new initiative with three distinct events that invite area poets and parkgoers to consider the relationship between nature and poetry.” [ArtsFairfax]
Gynocology Office Now Open in Annandale — “There’s a new healthcare option for women in Annandale. The Elite Gynecology Center will open on Feb. 21 at 3301 Woodburn Road, Suite 309. The founder, Dr. Nadine Hammoud, provides preventive care, annual exams, screenings, and minimally invasive surgery.” [Annandale Today]
What’s Happening With Transportation in Mount Vernon Area — Virginia Department of Transportation officials and local elected leaders recently provided updates on the Richmond Highway and southern George Washington Memorial Parkway projects. The Route 1 widening is now expected to begin in 2027, preceded by construction on Fairfax County’s bus rapid transit system. [On the MoVe]
Metro Launches Art Contest — “Young artists in D.C., Maryland and Virginia have an opportunity to get their artwork on a Metro bus for Earth Day. Metro’s Art in Transit program invites students in kindergarten through sixth grade from the DMV to submit artworks celebrating the role played by public transit in protecting our environment, combatting climate change, and supporting sustainable livable communities.” [WUSA9]
It’s Thursday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 76 and low of 55. Sunrise at 6:51 am and sunset at 5:56 pm. [Weather.gov]
(Updated at 10 p.m.) A man has died after being shot by police outside of Tysons Corner Center mall.
Frantic police radio transmissions went out around 6:30 p.m., for mall-based Tysons Urban Team officers following a suspect in the parking lot outside of Bloomingdale’s. The suspect then reportedly entered the woods along Fashion Blvd, after which officers radioed that gunshots had been fired.
The man was brought to the Fairfax County Police Department’s attention by a loss prevention officer who reported that there was a theft in progress earlier this evening, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said in a 9 p.m. media briefing.
When the loss prevention officer led police to the person believed to be a suspect, the man fled, and two FCPD officers — one in uniform and one in plainclothes — chased him out of the mall, according to police.
“Probably a quarter of a mile or so later, the suspect approached a small wooded area, a small patch of trees and brush,” Davis said. “The suspect ran into that area. Our officers continued to chase him into that area, and at some point in time, our police officers…discharged their firearms.”
Davis said the man was hit at least once, though the number of shots fired haven’t been confirmed yet.
Police say the man received “immediate” medical attention after being shot in the chest. He was transported to a hospital, where he died, the FCPD said at 8:19 p.m.
Fashion Blvd was closed to traffic between Leesburg Pike and Tysons One Place. A police helicopter is flying overhead.
No police officers were injured, Davis confirmed. He said the scene will be blocked off into the morning, as police search for potential evidence.
While there’s no indication so far that the man was armed or fired any shots, Davis didn’t rule out the possibility that he may have had a weapon.
“We want to make sure that if anything was discarded, we have an opportunity to identify and discover it,” he said.
Davis said he couldn’t identify the man yet beyond confirming that he was an adult and male, but he’s apparently “well known” to law enforcement in the D.C. region
“His encounters with local law enforcement in the National Capital region span many years, and it’s a violent criminal history,” he said, though he didn’t share any details of that history or regarding the reported theft.
Tysons Corner Center has been rocked by public safety scares over the past year, most notably a shots-fired incident on June 18 that prompted a panicked evacuation. Noah Settles, a 23-year-old D.C. resident, pleaded guilty to four felony charges stemming from the shooting earlier this month.
The mall was also evacuated in August after shoppers mistook a light fixture shattering for gunshots. A police investigation of a robbery in Arlington on Dec. 19 and a robbery at Elite Jewelers on Jan. 1 also set off rumors of gunfire that turned out to be unfounded.
Davis noted that no stores were closed tonight.
“We know how important this location is to many people, and that’s why our public safety commitment here is so robust,” Davis said. “We have 16 police officers that are assigned full-time to our team here. They work every day, around the clock to ensure this location remains…an absolute safe destination for shoppers, for people going to dinner, for people consuming entertainment.”
FCPD officers shot at least four people last year, two of them fatally. A dog was also shot and killed during a SWAT raid in Herndon in December.
NEWS PHOTO: @roryfgilmartin https://t.co/FO6me2qg6e pic.twitter.com/15LtvVy1Fd
— Alan Henney (@alanhenney) February 23, 2023
Officers are in the area of Fashion Blvd in McLean for an officer-involved shooting. Preliminarily, one man was shot in the upper body outside the mall & taken to hospital w/injuries considered life-threatening. No officers injured. Avoid the area. Updates to follow. #FCPD pic.twitter.com/b7GLouwqex
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) February 23, 2023
TYSONS SHOOTING — 8100 Tysons Corner Center. Additional officers needed ASAP. H/T @HCBright10 cc @ffxnow pic.twitter.com/ghurOT52gK
— Alan Henney (@alanhenney) February 22, 2023
Hat tip to Alan Henney
(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) Registrations for Fairfax County’s School Age Child Care (SACC) summer program will reopen tomorrow (Thursday) after technical issues disrupted its scheduled launch yesterday.
Camp Fairfax started allowing families to register at 8 a.m. on Tuesday (Feb. 21), but the Fairfax County Department of Neighborhood and Community Services (NCS), which oversees the program, reported at 9:13 a.m. that “technical difficulties” had taken the system down.
“The registration system…experienced a system failure following the opening of SACC summer program registration,” NCS said in a news release. “Staff responded by immediately pausing all summer registrations. Staff continues to work diligently to resolve issues and ensure the system can adequately respond to demand.”
An NCS spokesperson confirmed that “high demand/traffic volume created the system failure.” The department anticipates all issues will be fixed today, enabling it to restart registrations at 8 a.m. tomorrow.
NCS’ SACC/Camp Fairfax registration system is currently experiencing technical difficulties; we are working to resolve the issue and will share registration availability once this issue has been resolved. Thank you for your patience. @fairfaxcounty https://t.co/DBlCq9nUm5 pic.twitter.com/76dr8k95rI
— Fairfax County Neighborhood & Community Services (@FairfaxNCS) February 21, 2023
However, enrollment will now be “staggered” based on the name of the 35 locations where the camps will be held:
- Beginning Thursday, Feb. 23: Sites beginning with letters A-J (Aldrin Elementary School to James Lee Community Center)
- Beginning Friday, Feb. 24: Sites beginning with letters K-P (Kent Gardens Elementary School to Providence Community Center)
- Beginning Monday, Feb. 27: Sites beginning with letters S-W (Springfield Estates Elementary School to Wolftrap Elementary School)
Open to rising first to seventh graders who live in Fairfax County or Fairfax City, Camp Fairfax operates in week-long sessions from late June through early or late August, depending on the location. Each camp session has three “cabins” with activities aimed at artists, performers or athletes.
Camps located at the county’s community centers will run from June 20 to Aug. 18, while school sites will run from June 26 to Aug. 4.
The fees for this year’s camps will be determined by the county’s upcoming budget, a draft of which was presented to the Board of Supervisors yesterday. The cost can be adjusted based on a family’s income, with last year’s fees ranging from $10 for a family earning under $53,000 to $281 for a family earning $132,500 or more.
Registration will be available online and by phone (703-449-8989), though NCS advises not logging into the system before 8 a.m.
“Neighborhood & Community Services is committed to providing all Fairfax County and City of Fairfax residents equal access to high-quality camp and childcare opportunities,” NCS said. “We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience as we work to meet the demand for these services in our community.”
Fairfax County may get involved in the preservation of a cemetery belonging to a family with deep roots in the Vienna area, predating the formation of the U.S.
The Board of Supervisors directed staff yesterday (Tuesday) “to investigate options for addressing safety concerns” and the long-term care of the Carter Family Cemetery, a small plot near Tysons in what was once the historically Black community of Freedom Hill.
“This has been a while in coming. We’re getting to the point where there are some outcomes that may be truly viable, so [I] appreciate the board’s indulgence,” Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn said, noting that a final vote by the board will be needed before any action is taken.
According to the board matter, which was introduced by Alcorn and co-sponsored by Chairman Jeff McKay, descendants of the Carter family who still live in the area asked county staff for “assistance in preserving and protecting the cemetery property.”
The cemetery is located at 1737 Key West Lane in the Carter’s Green neighborhood, a subdivision of single-family houses adjacent to Raglan Road Park and the Tysons Towers senior living community.
There is one identified grave with a headstone for Millie Whales Carter that’s inscribed with the date of her death on Feb. 29, 1916 and the words “Gone but not forgotten.” The cemetery also has five or more unmarked graves, per the county’s cemetery survey.
Whales Carter was a descendant of Keziah Carter, who bought 50 acres of land in 1842 that had been inhabited by her ancestors in the indigenous Tauxenent tribe until the area’s colonization. The Carter family lived on and farmed the land for decades, later expanding into what’s now the Town of Vienna, according to the Fairfax County Park Authority.
The park authority dedicated signs at nearby Freedom Hill Park in 2021 that tell some of the Carter family’s story, but the cemetery has become neglected since the Carter’s Green subdivision was built in the 1970s, Alcorn said in the board matter.
“In recent years the Carter Family Cemetery has suffered from vandalism and dumping of landscaping waste,” the board matter says. “The immediate neighbor has also expressed safety concerns over a mature tree overhanging their property.”
The wooded lot is now “overgrown and has been used as a neighborhood dump for yard debris,” according to the Fairfax Genealogical Society.
Living members of the Carter family declined to comment for now when contacted by FFXnow, stating that they hoped to meet with Alcorn before talking to media.
The park authority says the board’s vote allows it to evaluate options for the future of the Carter Family Cemetery, but the exact role that the county will play isn’t clear yet.
“We have not yet conducted an analysis of potential solutions for this specific property in advance of the board’s directive, so we are just beginning the work of seeing what avenues might be available to help preserve this site,” an FCPA spokesperson said. “We will be providing the Board of Supervisors with proposed recommendations at a future date.”
Prior to yesterday’s vote, some supervisors suggested a countywide policy may be needed to set criteria for when and how the county should get involved in cemetery preservation efforts.
A new survey of cemetery and grave sites across the county is currently underway. The park authority’s initiative is expected to continue into 2024.
“Each one is a little different, and some might be better positioned for our engagement than others, but I think having a consistent policy across the county is going to be really important to make sure from a One Fairfax perspective that all of these cemeteries are treated fairly,” Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw said.
Photo via Fairfax County Park Authority/YouTube
