Frederick Douglass Elementary School and John Handley High School were proud to host Secretary of Education Atif Qarni on Wednesday, April 18, 2018, as part of his Listening Tour throughout Virginia.

Secretary Qarni was a teacher at Dale City’s Beville Middle School before being appointed Virginia's Secretary of Education.

Winchester Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Jason Van Heukelum, School Board Chair Allyson Pate, Directors of Instruction Bryan Wray and Nan Bryant, Director of Technology Aaron McBride, JHHS Principal Mike Dufrene, CTE Coordinator Jimmy Robertson, FDES Principal Stephanie Downey, and FDES Assistant Principal Melissa Maestle accompanied him on his tour. Students, faculty and staff welcomed Secretary Qarni as he made his way through the schools.

His visit to Frederick Douglass Elementary included several dual language 1st Grade and Kindergarten classes and the Spanish Immersion Pre-K Program, a program in which four-year-old students learn content in Spanish in an engaging and enriching immersion environment.

At John Handley High School, he observed art classrooms and several skilled trades classrooms in the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Program. The CTE Program provides students with an abundance of opportunities to explore career options through its trades academy, the health science academy and the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) academy.

It was a pleasure having Secretary Qarni tour our schools and programs. We appreciate the time spent with our teachers and students during his special visit.