September 15, 2026
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First lady Melania Trump visited western North Carolina on Tuesday, nearly two years after Hurricane Helene, praising Ashe County’s resilience while highlighting artificial intelligence and STEM education as part of the region’s future.
Trump visited Mountain View Elementary School in Jefferson, where students and educators reflected on the school’s role following Helene and discussed efforts to expand technology and hands-on learning in rural North Carolina. Media was also granted access to the event.
“Mountain View is a special place because of the people who fill it every day,” Principal Jerry Graybeal said, according to a White House press release of the event. “Following Hurricane Helene, our school became a place of service and support for our community. Today, we are also looking toward the future, creating new opportunities for our students through STEM, innovation, and hands-on learning.”
Hurricane Helene devastated parts of western North Carolina in September 2024, damaging roads, homes, and infrastructure while isolating mountain communities.
Trump centered much of her Tuesday visit on the community’s response to the storm and its recovery in the nearly two years since.
“North Carolina is the definition of resilience,” Trump told students and school employees. “Toughness in times of adversity is ingrained in the Tar Heel State’s character.”
Trump recalled the widespread damage Helene inflicted across western North Carolina before turning specifically to Mountain View, where the school was transformed into a distribution center after the storm.
“For children here at Mountain View Elementary, the storm took away much more than just your daily routine,” Trump said. “Your neighborhood was flooded, and your school was transformed into a distribution center.”
But as communities became isolated and normal school routines disappeared, Trump said residents responded by helping one another.
“Teachers became anchors of stability, and your school turned into more than a place to learn,” Trump said. “It turned into a lifeline, providing food, water, supplies, counseling, and hope.”
Ashe County Schools Superintendent Eisa Cox similarly recalled roads disappearing, homes being lost, and families becoming displaced following the storm.
“When I think back to those days, what I remember most is not the devastation; it is the people,” Cox said. “It was neighbor helping neighbor right here in this community.”
Trump also recognized Mountain View Assistant Principal Cynthia Harless for her work in the aftermath of Helene. When the storm struck, Harless drove to check on the school before floodwaters washed away roads, leaving her and her family unable to return home, Trump said.
“Rather than focus on her own hardship, she spent the next four weeks volunteering at Mountain View Elementary’s distribution center, providing critical supplies to families and neighbors in need,” Trump said.
Trump added resilience in western North Carolina should also be measured by the community’s willingness to look beyond what was lost and toward the opportunities ahead.
“Resilience, however, is more than just being strong and rebuilding what was lost,” Trump said. “True resilience means having the courage to look ahead and move society forward, creating a better future for our children.”
Trump has made artificial intelligence education one of the main focuses of her second term as first lady, including through the Presidential AI Challenge, a nationwide competition that encourages students and educators to explore uses of the emerging technology.
“Less than two years after Helene, North Carolina did just that,” Trump said. “Through the Presidential AI Challenge, students and teachers from North Carolina took the national stage, inspired by what’s possible.”
During Tuesday’s event, Trump highlighted North Carolina second-grade teacher Carrie Robledo, one of the challenge’s 2026 national champions.
Robledo, a teacher at Star Elementary School, developed “AI Insect Detectives,” a project that introduced young children to artificial intelligence through science, insects, and the natural world.
“Think about that remarkable journey: from floodwaters to the cutting edge of artificial intelligence,” Trump said. “Ms. Robledo built something that no hurricane can destroy, and no flood can wash away: knowledge.”
Trump said that knowledge could help students and the broader community look beyond the destruction left by Helene.
“Knowledge gives everyone in this town the chance to move beyond Helene and to imagine new possibilities,” Trump said. “It gives the next generation the choice to help create a beautiful world in the future — a better America.”
Ashe County school leaders have also emphasized connecting emerging technology with opportunities for students to solve problems and build careers in their own communities.
“We want you to be invested in your future,” Cox told students. “We want you to solve problems. We want you to come up with solutions, and we want you to be right here in Ashe County.”
Cox said the district’s emphasis on rural STEM education is intended to equip students with the skills and confidence to work in fields such as agriculture, engineering, technology, and artificial intelligence.
“It’s not technology for technology’s sake,” Cox said. “It’s about giving children knowledge, skills, confidence, and opportunity to solve problems, to strengthen our own communities right here in Ashe County, and imagine futures that have not been imagined yet.”
The first lady’s Ashe County visit comes one day before President Donald Trump is scheduled to return to North Carolina. The president is set to appear on Wednesday at Gastonia Municipal Airport for a campaign rally supporting Republican US Senate nominee Michael Whatley.
In a 7-2 vote on Monday, the Supreme Court upheld a federal judge’s decision to block changes that would limit mail-in voting.
Investigators found Duke medical school used race in admissions, disadvantaging white and Asian applicants despite a 2023 Supreme Court ruling.
Trump-linked super PAC has reserved $5 million in NC’s Senate race and $310,000 in NC-11 as the president prepares to visit Gastonia.
Whatley and Buckhout will take the national GOP stage as Republicans look to gain ground in two closely watched North Carolina races.
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