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Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology marked its 40th anniversary with one of its largest gatherings of alumni and former staff, bringing hundreds back for a weekend of tours, demonstrations and celebrations.
The festivities began Friday, Oct. 24, with a football game honoring alumni and former employees. Former principals Geoff Jones and Elizabeth Lodal attended, and the TJ Partnership Fund introduced the first members of its 1985 Club, whose future donations will support the school.
Principal Michael Mukai, a member of TJHSST’s inaugural Class of 1989, called the anniversary weekend inspiring, pointing to the school’s achievements and the global impact of its graduates.
Hundreds of former students and staff returned to campus Saturday for an open house. Current student ambassadors led building tours, while research labs hosted live demonstrations.
More than 30 alumni and 250 students participated in a networking session. Attendees also met with nearly 50 current and former faculty and staff members, and the TJHSST PTSA provided lunch.
Visitors explored the school’s new Alumni Hall and Gallery of Achievement displays, which preserve four decades of yearbooks, newspapers, student publications, graduation ceremonies and homecomings in digital form.
The displays resulted from a three-and-a-half-year effort to digitize documents, photographs and VHS tapes previously stored in an archive room.
The weekend concluded Saturday evening with a banquet at the Hilton Tysons Corner. More than 500 alumni, current and former staff members, and family members attended the event hosted by the TJ Partnership Fund.
Speakers included Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid, Chief of Schools Geovanny Ponce, TJ Partnership Fund Chair Hilary Gustave and Mukai.
The anniversary will also lead to a new Hall of Honor recognizing achievements across the TJHSST community. Induction criteria are scheduled to be announced during the TJ Partnership Fund’s annual Alumni Weekend in November 2025, with the first induction ceremony planned for November 2026.