Superintendent Hill honored to receive President’s Award

That’s why he has dedicated the award to the 500-plus hardworking employees of the district, everyone from teachers and administrators to support staff like custodians, bus drivers and cafeteria workers, plus the Union County Board of Education.

Presented to only a handful of superintendents in the state each year, the award recognizes a variety of qualities exemplified by Hill, like “transformative leadership, innovative educational practices, and a measurable impact on student outcomes that goes beyond traditional management.”

Thanks to those qualities, Union County Schools has been tremendously successful during Hill’s eight years leading the district. So much so that it is impossible for a single article to capture the considerable opportunities the system has provided for thousands of local students enrolled now and in the past.

A quick way to sum up some of that success is to look at a couple of the other vetted awards the system has earned recently.

The Georgia School Boards Association named the Union County Board of Education an “Exemplary Board” last fall, and the district won 2025 Georgia Charter System of the Year – accolades that, paired with Hill’s superintendent award, speak volumes to the level of dedication students receive.

And the schools have the stats to back up their motto of “Success For All,” which describes a districtwide culture Hill has championed since day one.

Among numerous positive metrics, the system enjoys a 10-year graduation rate of 97.25% and top rankings among the 14-district Pioneer RESA, which is itself situated among the top RESAs in the state.

Then there’s the fact that the system consistently achieves high academic performance while maintaining one of the lowest school millage rates in Georgia, not to mention the district’s debt-free status, despite having completed a multimillion-dollar Elementary School just last year.

But for Hill, the superintendent’s job is much more personal than awards and numbers; certainly, those things are important as one way of quantifying success.

What truly matters to Hill, however, is delivering on the promises contained in “Success For All,” so that every student has the chance to lead a good life – regardless of their background and circumstances.

Making good on those promises means holding a big-picture view that attempts to peer into the increasingly uncertain future facing schoolchildren today; Hill wants to ensure that students are well prepared for life after graduation as technologies like AI race to reshape the economy and society at large.

It also means zooming in on the individual situations each child faces in the classroom and at home, which paints a more detailed picture of a student body that is incredibly diverse in terms of interests, abilities and financial means.

Each year, for example, many seniors earn academic scholarships, several sign for collegiate athletics, and some pursue the military. At the same time, over 20% of students in the district have clinically diagnosed disabilities ranging from ADHD and dyslexia to nonverbal autism.

In the realm of economic diversity, quite a few children come from families that can afford to take advantage of every available opportunity, while others are unable to complete their homework after the sun goes down because their parents can’t afford to pay the power bill.

To accomplish “Success For All” amid such a wide array of student needs and interests, the system must innovate, and the options have to be just as diverse as the school population. So, what does that look like in practice?

Heavy emphases on literacy and foundational mathematics from the earliest ages; well-balanced nutrition for all students; development of life skills centered on things like punctuality and interpersonal relations; extra instruction where needed; mainstream technological integration with appropriate guardrails; plentiful dual enrollment, Advanced Placement and STEM opportunities for the college-bound; dozens of career pathways for kids wanting to go directly into the workforce or to trade school; individualized education plans for children with disabilities; outreach efforts to touch base with students at home; multiple counselors on each campus to meet mental health demands; and more, all available at Union County Schools.

Equally vital to providing a comprehensive basic education alongside student-specific options for advancement is knowing how to meet the children where they are to connect them with those opportunities.

With more than two decades working in Union County’s schools, Hill understands that the only thing many students need is a clear runway to reach success.

On the other hand, some students require more concentrated care and attention, like children struggling academically and/or behaviorally. Knowing the challenges they face, Hill has a particular fondness for these students, for whom he advocates compassion and patience by educators to make breakthroughs.

All told, there are over 3,000 students enrolled in Union County, and fulfilling their needs takes a ton of work, which is why Hill is grateful for the strong leadership team he has developed in the Central Office and among the principals at each school, who in turn rely on the heartfelt determination of faculty and staff to make the system a place where every child can succeed.

Hill continues to improve his own leadership, too. He celebrated a special career milestone last Friday by graduating from Carson-Newman University with a Doctorate in Educational Leadership.

He considers the rigorous achievement a hard-fought step in the ongoing process of honing his skillset to forward the best interests of local children, about which the same can be said of his tireless networking efforts.

Not only does Hill collaborate with neighboring school districts to share ideas and resources to help students get a better education in preparation for the workforce of tomorrow, but he also learns from and imparts his own knowledge in various outside venues.

At the state level, Hill serves on the Georgia School Superintendents Association Board of Directors and with Gov. Brian Kemp’s Superintendent Advisory Committee, and regionally, he chairs the boards for both the Mountain Education Center and Pioneer RESA.

From those positions, Hill promotes Union County’s north star of “Success For All” among other educational leaders to form mutual partnerships that benefit students locally and across the region and state.

This enables him to maximize his goals back home in Blairsville, where the Hill family roots extend in time to the land-grant days. It’s a win-win for the schools and the broader community, because home is where the heart is for Hill, and his heart is with the students of Union County.