Atif Mustafa Qarni (born 1978) is an American teacher, former military non-commissioned officer, and Democratic politician who was appointed by Governor Ralph Northam as Virginia Secretary of Education.

[1] Emigrating from Karachi, Pakistan, with his family at the age of ten, Qarni grew up in Parkville, Maryland, before moving to Manassas, Virginia, in 2005.

[3][4] He served in the United States Marine Corps, was deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and rose to the rank of Sergeant.

[citation needed] He then served as a civics, economics, U.S. history, and math teacher at Beville Middle School in Dale City.

[3][7] In 2021, he resigned from the cabinet position to become the managing director of external affairs at Temple University’s Hope Center.