Hoke County Schools Superintendent Freddie Williamson has been named one of four finalists for the 2016 National Superintendent of the Year.
The announcement was made Tuesday by AASA, The School Superintendents Association, which is a co-sponsor of the annual contest.
The winner will be announced at AASA’s National Conference on Education, which is scheduled for Feb. 11-13 in Phoenix.
The other three finalists head public school systems in Cincinnati, Charlottesville, Virginia, and Vancouver, Washington.
AASA Executive Director Danial A. Domenech said in a news release that the four finalists for the 2016 national title all have demonstrated “a steadfast commitment to excellence in the work they do.”
Williamson has headed the Hoke County schools for nine years and worked more than 30 years in public education. He began as a teacher, then worked in various aspects of school administration for more than 25 years.
In November, he was named the 2016 A. Craig Phillips North Carolina Superintendent of the Year.
The AASA release said Williamson is known for “his transformational leadership style, no-excuses philosophy and innovative approach to addressing challenges.”
AASA says applicants in its National Superintendent of the Year program are measured by four criteria, including creativity in meeting the needs of all students, personal and organizational communication skills, a focus on continual improvement for self and staff, and community involvement.
The Hoke school system has about 8,600 students at 14 schools – eight elementary schools, three middle schools, two high schools, including one early college high school, and an alternative school that combines middle and high school classes.
Since 1988, two North Carolina superintendents have been named National Superintendent of the Year.
In 2013, the title was won by Mark A. Edwards, the superintendent of Mooresville Graded School District, and in 2004 it was won by William R. McNeal Jr., then superintendent of the Wake County schools.
Originally posted on the Fayetteville Observer