School History

Virginia Run Elementary School opened on September 5, 1989 under the leadership of our first principal, Mrs. Suzanne Burke Walters. Our school was dedicated at a ceremony on June 10, 1990. The quilt pictured below was presented to the school at the dedication. Each Virginia Run class designed and made a square for the quilt to commemorate their first year at Virginia Run.

Photograph of a portion of the quilt. 27 squares are fully visible and include images of a cardinal, a bear puppet, a butterfly, a rocket, a penguin, a tree, a dinosaur, a leprechaun, dogwood blossoms, a turtle, a whale, and a manatee. The center panel, in yellow with blue lettering, is the image that appears on one of Virginia Run's first yearbooks, that of a cartoon Viking running across a map of the state of Virginia with the words: Virginia Run Vikings, First Run!

Design and Construction

Virginia Run was one of the first 36-classroom school facilities in the county and was designed by the architecture firm S.H.W.C., Inc. Our school was built by the V. F. Pavone Construction Company for approximately $6,610,000. You can explore the construction process, from dirt field to finished building, in this series of photographs.

Willow Springs

Did you know that when Virginia Run opened, our building housed not one, but two separate schools? Willow Springs Elementary School opened the same year as Virginia Run, but their building was not completed in time for the opening of schools in September, so classes were housed at Virginia Run for several months until their school building was ready for occupancy.

Photograph showing the covers of Virginia Run's first yearbook. The first yearbook was printed twice and had different covers with each printing. The original cover is a blue-on-white illustration of a Viking character running across a map of the state of Virginia. The cover reads: Virginia Run Vikings, First Run, 1989 to 1990. The second yearbook cover is more abstract. It is splatters of red and blue paint on white and reads: The Best of 89 to 90. — Virginia Run's 1st Yearbook (Original Cover and Second Printing)

A Glimpse Back in Time

In 1989, Virginia Run Elementary School was featured on the Fairfax County Public Schools cable television channel series Profile. The Red Apple 21 crew spent several days at Virginia Run gathering interviews with teachers and classroom footage. The resulting documentary provides a fascinating look at Virginia Run during our first year.

What’s in a Name?

Have you ever wondered about the origin of the name “Virginia?” It’s a story that begins in the late 16^th century when English colonists encountered on the island of Roanoke a weroance of the Secotan people. Learn more in this video produced for Fairfax County Public Schools’ cable television channel Red Apple 21.

A Long-Distance Call

On March 2, 2007, students from Virginia Run Elementary School spoke with Commander Suni Williams aboard the International Space Station. With the help of the Vienna Wireless Society, Commander Williams answered questions from Virginia Run students. Relive the event through this video produced for the Fairfax County Public Schools cable television news program SchoolScene.

Red Hill

In May 1989, during the naming process for our school, 36 names were suggested by the community. Only one name other than Virginia Run was recorded in School Board minutes: Red Hill. Red Hill was proposed in homage to the Red Hill School, a one-room schoolhouse formerly located on Bull Run Post Office Road. You can learn more about the Red Hill School in this video from Fairfax County Public Schools' Schools of Yesteryear series.

Our Principals

Suzanne Burke Walters (1989-1995), Jane Wilson (1995-1996), Teresa Hicks (1996-2010), Laraine W. Edwards (2010-2019), Elizabeth Bumbrey (2019-2023), and Dave Gerstner (2024-present).

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