U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos will visit Huntsville on Wednesday as part of her "Rethink School" tour. DeVos will tour the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Marshall Space Flight Center and the U.S. Space and Rocket Center.

According to a press release, while at the Space and Rocket Center, DeVos will be able to see "out-of-the-classroom learning experiences for students" and will address the importance of rethinking how school is done in order to improve student outcomes.

"Our team is crossing the country this year to challenge local leaders, educators and parents to rethink school," said DeVos in a prepared statement. "We know the current system is leaving too many students unprepared, so we must question everything about the way we do school in this country. There's no more time for tinkering around the edges. No more trying the same things and expecting different results."

DeVos will begin the day at the Georgia Institute of Technology and according to a separate release, will also visit Mississippi and Louisiana on the tour.

DeVos conducted a similar back-to-school tour last year, covering six states: Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri and Indiana. On that tour, DeVos visited schools that innovate in their approach to delivering education to students.

DeVos was a controversial pick for Education Secretary among public school supporters. DeVos has no experience working in public schools and is a strong supporter of vouchers, tax credit scholarship programs, and charter schools, making her unpopular with those who say those types of choice programs weaken public schools.

This is DeVos' second visit to Alabama since becoming Secretary of Education in February 2017. She visited Mobile County Schools in August 2017 at then-Superintendent Martha Peek's invitation to see the kinds of school choice the district offered. DeVos had called out Mobile the previous Spring for earning a failing grade in the area of school choice.

A spokesperson for Gov. Kay Ivey said Ivey will not attend the events in Huntsville due to scheduling conflicts.

Alabama Superintendent Eric Mackey also said he would not be able to be in Huntsville for DeVos' visit due to previous commitments.