Knightdale — Oct. 27 was one of the happiest days in Hodge Road Elementary School Principal Jamee Lynch’s career. That’s when she had a chance to celebrate her selection as the 2006 Principal of the Year with her staff and students.

“It was so nice to come to school the following morning,” Lynch, whose win was made public at an awards ceremony in Raleigh Oct. 26, said. “They had hung a banner on my door and organized a breakfast gathering in the media center. And the kids wrote letters congratulating me.”

While Lynch, who had no idea about her win before it was made public, enjoys the attention, she is convinced the whole school should be basking in the spotlight. “I truly believe the award is a recognition of the work the whole school community has done,” she said. “This award is not about me, but about everyone here.”

When pressed, she admitted that it is the principal’s job to recruit the staff and create a collaborative working environment. “I have tried to do that and will keep on setting a good tone,” the awarded Wake County educator said.

Receiving the recognition was even sweeter due to some rough times Hodge Road experienced due to the federal No Child Left Behind testing program, which requires all students to perform at a minimum level. Because Hodge Road didn’t meet standards, it had to provide families with transfers to other schools. But the school’s performance has improved significantly, Lynch, who has led Hodge Road since 2001, said.

“We improved our reading scores in one year so that almost 90 percent of students performed at or above grade level, compared to the previous year’s 81 percent,” Lynch said.

Lynch, who has worked with Wake County for seven years and been a principal for five years, praised her staff for being willing to keep on trying despite difficulties. “Instead of letting the problems destroy their moral, they wanted to see what the school could do differently to improve things,” she said.

The 2006 Principal of the Year finalists included Freda Cole of Forest Pines Elementary, Jan Hargrove of Turner Creek Elementary, David Ansbacher of East Millbrook Middle and Cathy Moore of Sanderson High.

The Hodge Road principal will now go on to compete in North Carolina regional and state Principal of the Year competitions.