We, the undersigned, do believe the following: 1. First and foremost, that admissions into Orange County Magnet Programs should be contingent solely on the merits of the student. 2. The merits of the student shall be defined as actions carried out by the student and that the student has control over. Such actions include the achievement of high grades, written works, extracurricular activities, distinction in athletic pursuits and the like. 3. Students shall not be discriminated against for admission based on race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. 4. Race, religion, gender or sexual orientation shall not be counted as merits or accomplishments of the student and thus should not be constituent in the admissions process. 5. The faculty who design and carry out the curriculum of the magnet programs know best who will succeed in their program and will certainly know the rigor and requirements of their program better than a third party corporation assigned by the school board to decide admissions. 6. That since each magnet has different expectations for its students, no central authority could possibly decide which student will best fit each magnet's requirements. 7. Diversity in the magnet programs can be achieved by the careful admission of qualified students as designated by the faculty who design and administer the curriculum of said magnets. 8. Earnest and interested students of merit should not be denied admission into a magnet in favor of a less-qualified student for the sake of promoting diversity. With such beliefs, we the undersigned do wish the following to be carried out by our elected officials: 1. The admissions of magnet programs should be reverted back to the former system and left to the discretion of the magnet's faculty.