Zionsville Community Schools Supt. Scott Robison has been named the 2022 Lorin A. Burt Outstanding Educator of the Year by the Indiana School Boards Association.
With his retirement on the horizon, he said he has had time to reflect on his 38-year career in education, including the last 16 years he has served as superintendent of ZCS.
According to a press release from ISBA, “Dr. Robison was recognized for his commitment to academic excellence, sound financial stewardship, and attention to personal relationships.”
While Robison said he is honored by the award, he said it is a shared accomplishment with all the team members he has worked with at ZCS that have contributed to the successes of the district.
Robison said he originally wanted to move from an educational role in the classroom to an administrative position because in his previous roles, he noticed when leaders like principals or superintendents did not consider the staff that worked in the classrooms with the children.
As an administrator, Robison said he has worked alongside excellent staff members and teachers to ensure the district fostered a collaborative and enriching environment for staff and students alike.
“One of the things that I love best about working here is that not only do parents align with the kids and their teachers, but they are also trying to move their hopes and dreams forward,” Robison said. “Whenever people ask me about the success around here, I tell them: the students who are wildly successful here, they didn’t just get it by showing up. They work hard.”
In past years, Robison said that collaborative relationships between parents, teachers and administrators have allowed for ZCS to thrive, and he hopes this continues as the new superintendent, Becky Coffman, comes into the role.
Robison said Coffman brings strength, stamina, integrity and support to her work that he believes will contribute to the sustained success of the district and that she will make decisions based on what is best for the children.
“As superintendent, I have supported the people who are doing the critical work every day,” Robison said. “The only reason we put those doors open when we’re open is for student growth. That’s it.”
Robison said he felt that the educators most deserving of admiration are those in the classroom, but he is grateful to have had the opportunity to look to others to understand what it means to foster an environment where children can have a safe and enriching learning experience.
“This isn’t rocket science, it’s people science. And so I have seen, even throughout the really trying times of the pandemic, that teachers were working hard to connect with kids,” Robison said. “We’ve been fostering that relationship capacity in hiring the right people, and ensuring that they know that this is – from the research – a very important element of their teaching and engagement of youth.”
Robison said he hopes to stay involved in the community following his retirement and that he will spend some time traveling and seeing his children.
“As I approach retirement, I can carry with me the good fortune to have been affiliated with people of dignity of every stripe in the communities where I worked. That’s a blessing.”
