Fairfax County Public Schools Responds To Allegations

It is hard to overstate the gravity of what is now unfolding in Fairfax County Public Schools. For more than three years, according to whistleblower Zenaida Perez, school leaders were warned—again and again—about deeply troubling allegations involving one of their own social workers. And for more than three years, nothing happened.

Perez, a veteran English as a second language teacher and Cuban immigrant who has built strong ties with her students—many of them recent arrivals from Latin America—first became aware of the situation in May 2022.

Then-Principal Chad Lehman approached her with an unsettling question: had she provided a pregnancy test to a student? She had not. The question prompted her to dig deeper, and what she found was disturbing.

Meet teacher and whistleblower Zenaida Perez. Born in Cuba, she has been teaching English as a second language for 20+ years, many of her students young Hispanic immigrants. A native speaker of Spanish, she builds strong bonds with her students.

Last week, she went public with… pic.twitter.com/Okaj4M6rQO

— Asra Nomani (@AsraNomani) August 12, 2025

A 17-year-old Guatemalan student confided in Perez that Centreville High School social worker Carolina Diaz had arranged an abortion for her at a Falls Church clinic, personally paid for the procedure, and never informed the girl’s family.

In her own written statement, the student confirmed these details, explaining she feared her family’s reaction and trusted Diaz to keep it secret. If reports are accurate that Lehman approved the use of school funds to cover costs, that would mean taxpayer dollars may have been used to terminate a minor’s pregnancy without parental consent.

Perez says she immediately reported what she knew—first to Lehman, then via email to other school officials. Over the next three years, she claims she met or spoke with district representatives at least seven times about the matter. Yet the district’s public stance, as of last week, is that they had only just learned of the allegations.

The whistleblower’s account paints a stark picture of either systemic negligence or deliberate concealment. Lehman himself has since been promoted, while Diaz’s actions remain unaddressed publicly.

Worse, Perez says she recently learned of a second student targeted by the same social worker. That student narrowly escaped undergoing an abortion and is now raising her child.