State officials help Belmont Elementary School in Woodbridge mark 50 years

Belmont Elementary in Woodbridge celebrated its School of Excellence award and its 50th Anniversary at the same time. Special guests at the event included State Secretary of Education, Atif Qarni; State Senator Scott Surovell; Interim School Board Chairman Babur B. Lateef, M.D.; School Board Member, Alyson Satterwhite (Gainesville); and Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Steven Walts.

To honor Belmont Elementary on the occasion of celebrating 50 years, state Senator Surovell presented a plaque and special commendation to the school on behalf of the General Assembly of Virginia. This was an acknowledgement of Belmont’s contributions to the local community and for the dedication to providing its students with a strong foundation to be lifelong learners.

Speaking to the students, Senator Surovell was quoted as saying in a news release, “Your school has been here a long time and it is the center of your neighborhood. You all come here to get educated, you come for events, people come here to vote, and so it’s very important to celebrate when these kinds of institutions have these kinds of anniversaries.”

State Secretary of Education Atif Qarni was on hand during the celebration and was very excited for the school to not only be celebrating 50 years, but to also be named as a School of Excellence for the 2016-2017 school year. “The reason you’re really successful is because your teachers work really, really hard, along with your school principal and other staff members, to make sure you are successful,” Qarni said.