The state Association of School Administrators announced Nov. 19 that Era Roberts, assistant principal for instruction at Batesburg-Leesville High School, has been selected as the state’s Secondary Assistant Principal of the Year for 2021.

This is a separate distinction from Assistant Principal of the Year, which the association awards each year to an elementary, middle and high school administrator.

“Dr. Roberts is the consummate instructional leader,” Lexington County School District 3 Superintendent Ashley Atkinson is quoted in a release. “Batesburg-Leesville High School has made tremendous strides and shifts in the areas of growth mindset, culture and personalized learning, and Dr. Roberts has been an integral part of this vision.

“Dr. Roberts chooses to lead by example, modeling for faculty and staff the highest level of service and commitment to our Panther students as she fulfills the district’s mission of preparing students for the future now. Without question, she is most deserving of this prestigious award.”

Roberts has worked in the district since 2017. The news release praises her work growing the school’s Dual Enrollment Program. The program “allows motivated high school students the opportunity to get a head start on their college education before graduating” and “offers students the opportunity to earn an Associate in Arts degree from Midlands Technical College while they are earning their high school diploma,” according to the school’s 2019-20 student handbook.

Roberts earned her bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism and master’s in middle level education from Georgia Southern University before working to achieve a master’s in education (2015) and an educational doctorate degree in curriculum and instruction (2020) from the University of South Carolina.

“I could spend hours typing accolades about how bright, driven and effective Era Roberts is as an educator, but the key element that she does better than the vast majority of her counterparts is her genuine love for kids,” Sonya Bryant, president of Batesburg-Leesville High School is quoted in the release. “She believes there is nothing too complicated or too difficult to accomplish if it is in the best interest of the student she is attempting to serve. She uses her creativity and exceptional intelligence to always be solution-driven in an effort to see our students succeed.”