Celebrating National School Principal Month

Every October, school districts nationwide celebrate National School Principals Month to showcase our fearless school leaders. OCS is honored to recognize our 13 school principals who consistently lead with compassion, courage, and commitment for their students, staff, and families. 

As school leaders, our principals supported their school teams in collaboration with district staff to achieve a historic milestone—for the first time ever in 2024-2025, Orange County Schools led the state as one of only three districts where 100% of schools Met or Exceeded Growth (https://bit.ly/3JJwLBe). 

In addition, thanks to consistent leadership across the district:

• For the first time since 2017, five OCS schools earned a School Performance Grade of “B,” up from three in 2023-2024.
• Grade Level Proficiency increased by 3.5 points to 58.4%, which is 3.4 points above the state average (55.0%).
• OCS four-year cohort graduation rebounded 8 points to 87.7%, equal to the state average.
   

On September 4, at the first Leadership Team Meeting this school year, principals received certificates to recognize the historic growth and outstanding achievements of all 13 OCS schools in 2024-25.

We are also proud for Mr. Jason Johnson of Orange High School to serve as the 2025-2026 Wells Fargo North Carolina Principal of the Year (NC POY)(https://bit.ly/4mqF7wf). As an ambassador for all 2,590 principals, Mr. Johnson regularly travels across the state to support schools, share his vision for leadership, and wish everyone a “Great Panther Day!”

On September 26, Pathways Elementary School Principal Mrs. Kristin Mattison-Williamson was named OCS 2025-2026 Principal of the Year (https://bit.ly/4pSxnFa). In a surprise school assembly, Mrs. Mattison-Williamson received the recognition on a pink carpet rolled out in front of students, school and district staff, and her family members.

Join us in recognizing our 13 OCS Principals (in alphabetical order by school): 

• Mr. Austin Morris, A.L. Stanback Middle School
• Dr. Anna Hipps, Cedar Ridge High School 
• Mrs. Kandis Sauls, Central Elementary School 
• Mrs. Kelly Parks, Efland-Cheeks Global Elementary School 
• Mrs. Kimberly Griffis, Grady A. Brown Elementary School 
• Mrs. Tenisha Williamson, Gravelly Hill Middle School
• Mrs. Jessica Nagy, Hillsborough Elementary School 
• Dr. Meredith Maier, New Hope Elementary School 
• Mr. Jason Johnson, Orange High School 
• Mrs. Jayme Bell-Williams, Orange Middle School 
• Mr. Stan Farrington, Partnership Academy High School 
• Mrs. Kristin Mattison-Williamson, Pathways Elementary School 
• Mr. Tony Widder, River Park Elementary School

We are extremely grateful to our incredible administrators for their dedication to their schools and our whole community. We look forward to the future of our district with these leaders guiding their schools!

#orangecountyfirst #NationalSchoolPrincipalMonth