Melania Trump Encourages A.I. in the Classroom with Vigilance

On Tuesday, the first lady visited a rural North Carolina elementary school in a community devastated by floods nearly two years ago. She encouraged children to ‘dream big.’

First Lady Melania Trump talks to students at Mountain View Elementary School on September 15, 2026 in North Jefferson, North Carolina. The first lady is at the school to see how they’re using technology in the classroom. (Credit: Kent Nishmura-Pool/Getty Images)

Nearly two years after Hurricane Helene spun a tropical storm through North Carolina’s Ashe County unleashing catastrophic floods killing more than 100 people, the community has come through the devastation and is looking to the future.

First Lady Melania Trump, who visited the area in January of 2025 just days after her husband President Donald Trump’s inauguration, returned on Tuesday visiting Mountain View Elementary School in North Jefferson, North Carolina, hailing the community and its leaders for their resilience and for their focus on technology and education.

“Knowledge is power. Knowledge gives everyone in this town the chance to move beyond Helene and to imagine new possibilities,” Mrs. Trump said in her remarks. “It …