‘Mr. SpongeBob’ principal started out as kindergarten teacher

By Erin McGrath

Published: August 13, 2008

They call him “Mr. SpongeBob.”

The new principal at Tye River Elementary School, Greg Hill, said he earned the moniker from his love of the color yellow while teaching kindergarten students in Chesterfield County.

“It evolved from there,” Hill said. Students associated his favorite color with the Nickelodeon cartoon character and the bright yellow shoes Hill wore the first day of school every year, he said.

Over the years, a collection of all things SpongeBob grew.

“Kids knew I liked SpongeBob and they started to bring me little SpongeBob things,” Hill said. “Knickknacks, toys, things they didn’t want anymore, and I started to collect them.”

Now, Hill has brought the collection to decorate the windows and shelves of his new office at the elementary school. Being “Mr. SpongeBob” isn’t his only talent and he’s also no stranger to doing anything to motivate kids.

“I can juggle and I can wiggle my ears,” Hill said. “In the past to motivate students for some fundraising activities, I’ve been in a dress, I’ve shaved my head, I kissed a pig. There’s nothing I won’t do for kids.”

Hill began as Tye River Elementary principal on July 1, replacing Sandra McKenzie, who changed positions within the Nelson County Public Schools.

“She’s been a great resource and still is a resource I can call on,” Hill said of McKenzie. “I don’t feel like I’m really stepping into her shoes as much as standing next to them.”

Hill began his career as a kindergarten teacher in Arizona. He then moved to Chesterfield and eventually became an assistant principal in Powhatan County.

He began looking for a position as a principal as a way to have a broader effect on students.

“I was ready to move up,” Hill said. “I really wanted to be there for the whole school and be in a leadership position.”

Nelson County was just the atmosphere he was also looking for.

“I like that slower, small-town atmosphere because I’d grown up in a small town,” Hill said. “I’m coming in following leaders who have done an incredible job at getting this county to the high standards that it has.”

Hill has no plans to make any immediate drastic changes at the school.

“I can’t make any changes because I don’t know what’s really happening,” Hill said. “As far as right off the bat, I’m just referring to how have we done it in the past and if it’s something small that we can tweak, we’ll do that.”