Hillsborough, N.C. — Gravelly Hill Middle School Principal Jason Johnson has been named the Orange County Schools’ 2010 Wachovia Principal of the Year.

Johnson has been the principal of Gravelly Hill Middle since the school opened in 2006 and has been in school administration since 2001. He began his career as a keyboarding, computer skills and business teacher in Chatham County and Guilford County schools before becoming an assistant principal at A. L. Stanback Middle School. He then served as a principal in Guilford County from 2004 to 2006 before returning to Orange County.

“This is not my award. This belongs to the students, teachers, cafeteria staff, office staff, every community and everyone who works at Gravelly Hill,” Johnson said in a statement. “I want to thank everyone for their support and for making Gravelly Hill the outstanding school that it is.”

Over the past three years, Gravelly Hill Middle students have shown a 20 percent improvement in math and reading scores on state tests, as well as a marked decrease in the overall achievement gap, Orange County Schools Superintendent Patrick Rhodes said.

“The growth that Gravelly Hill has exhibited is a direct result of the leadership of Mr. Johnson. He has earned the respect and admiration of the students, staff and his peers, as well as the Orange County community that he serves. He has done an outstanding job of creating a true community of learners,” Rhodes said in a statement.

The Principal of the Year program is sponsored by the state Department of Public Instruction, The Center for School Leadership Development Principals’ Executive Program and Wachovia Corp.