Rebecca Roberson

How long have you been at Bullis?

Since 2013

What role or roles do you play at Bullis? If you are teaching faculty, what do you teach? 

Upper School Math faculty - Precalculus and Honors Geometry

What made you decide to work in an educational setting? 

I have always liked helping people with math. Even in high school, I was the head of the math lab (which helped students with math questions). I even "taught" for one of the Geometry teachers when he went away to a conference. My passion started in high school and has never waivered and I cherished the opportunities I had to teach in high school and continue to enjoy them today. 

What is your favorite thing about working at Bullis?

My amazing colleagues and students. I love that we have an amazingly dedicated faculty who are willing to do whatever it takes to provide a learning environment to our students. Our students are hardworking and persevering and never give up. I appreciate the can do spirit by our students.

When not at Bullis, what interests do you pursue?

I am a parent of two young children so that is what occupies most of my time outside of Bullis, but when we are not in a pandemic we travel (as a family) every opportunity that we get. My youngest was on four continents before his 1st birthday.

Who is someone that inspires you and how?

My siblings - all inspire me - there are four of us (I am the 2nd of five) and we are all in some sort of educational field. My oldest sister works for KQED for their educational group in the Bay Area and San Francisco and has been busling training teachers during these unique times. My youngest sister was just voted North Carolina regional teacher of the year (for her region) - she teaches middle school math. She is always striving for ALL students and wants all students to be successful. My brother teaches 5th grade in a small district in Colorado. He is in his 4th year teaching, and I am so proud of all the hard work that they put in for their students. They are constantly learning and working to make sure all students learn. My sister right below me is currently a stay at home mom, but she is a special education teacher (before her children were born) and she is working to go back into the classroom as soon as the pandemic ends. They inspire me because we all work to figure out daily how to be better at what we do and think constantly about how we can be the best teachers possible for our students! 

What is the best book or production that you have read, watched, or listened to lately? 

As a parent - one of the greatest things we have listened to lately is this weekly podcast called Smash Boom Best, which takes two ideas and debates them to determine which is the coolest. My boys love it and I do too! Probably the best production, though (as an adult) was when Disney + released Hamilton back in the fall and getting to watch the original cast. That was great. The best book I read (well at least where I learned the most) was So you Want to Talk about Race which I read in the summer.

What global challenge would you like to see tackled and how do you see yourself contributing to the positive change that you desire?

Global education worldwide - in particular in challenging places in the world and places where it is difficult to get an education. One way I have contributed is that I worked with five other members in my church to get a grant to help open a girls secondary school in a small village of Namasakata the Tunduru region in Tanzania. My church has a relationship with the Diocese of a Masasi (a region in Tanzania) and the Bishop's of that diocese goal is to open a secondary school for girls there. They already have one for boys. We were able to get a grant and the school buildings will be able to be finished and the school should be able to open sometime during 2021. It was a grant that was a little over $65,000, which is huge for that region.

What is one fun fact about you that others may not know or may surprise them?

I have been writing in a journal every day since the summer of 1994. The other fun thing is that I am working on learning Swahili on Duolingo and I practice 10-15 minutes a day and currently have a 492 day streak going of practicing.

Why would you tell a prospective family to choose Bullis?

The teachers really care about the success of your child. I mean all teachers care, but Bullis teachers are willing to go above and beyond to figure out how to best help your child learn. Bullis teachers won't give up on your child and will keep working until they figure out what works.