Mike Wolanin | The Republic Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation Superintendent Jim Roberts talks about his time leading the school corporation during an interview Jan. 18. Roberts will retire at the end of the school year to become vice president of the Community Education Coalition.
Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. Superintendent Jim Roberts often approached his job leading our local school system with a song in his heart.
Whether he was channeling Elvis or Blink-182 onstage or in sometimes viral videos, Roberts displayed a gift for outside-the-box thinking, finding unique ways to connect harmoniously with students, fellow educators and the community. And though the end of the current school year will mark his swan song at BCSC, Roberts’ encore is likely to be in tune with his efforts as school corporation superintendent over the past eight years.
The Brown County native has been an educator for 37 years, including as a math and computer science teacher at Hauser Junior-Senior High School in Hope and superintendent at Batesville before leading BCSC. So it’s sweet music that Roberts and his institutional knowledge of our local schools won’t be traveling far.
In July, Roberts will take on a new role as vice president of the Community Education Coalition. It’s hard to imagine anyone who could better help CEC meet its mission: “aligning the region’s community learning system with economic growth and an improved quality of life.”
“The CEC says Roberts will focus on enhancing equitable access, attainment and success across all levels of the education continuum from early learning to adult education, creating seamless pathways to regional career opportunities, retaining talent in the region by encouraging young people to stay and work locally after graduation in well-paying careers and attracting more companies to grow and establish themselves in the region,” The Republic reported in an article on Roberts’ retirement announcement.
That covers a lot of local territory, but so has Roberts. He has experience connecting with CEC and a multitude of community and regional partners, and there is every reason to believe that the spirit of cooperation and collaboration that Roberts has championed will provide new opportunities for young people to improve their lives and the life of our community.
Meantime, Roberts departs a school system that he and school leaders have situated for growth and improvement. Just last month, the BCSC board authorized a future-focused $306 million building campaign that, among other things, will include construction of a new westside elementary school and renovation and improvement of all elementary schools except Parkside and Schmitt, which have already been renovated.
After years of planning and community input, the decision was taken to pursue those projects in a manner that won’t impact the district’s tax rate because other debt will be paid off at the same time. That’s a notable feat of stewardship.
Perhaps more importantly, Roberts also led efforts to increase compensation for teachers and staff, making BCSC a desirable destination for talented educators.
Roberts has been an innovative leader at BCSC. He chose to move to CEC “because it was more than a role to me; it’s being deeply rooted in our community and making a difference beyond my time as superintendent.”
That’s quite a legacy. One that’s still under construction.
