Get to know Nathaniel Robin, Board of Education President

In June, Nathaniel Robin took over the position of Vestavia Hills Board of Education President. The Vestavia Voice recently sat down with Robin, currently a professor in the UAB genetics department, to find out his journey to this community and inquire about goals during his term.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your family.

“My road to Vestavia Hills has been anything but a straight line. I was born and raised in Hempstead, New York, which is a suburb of New York City on Long Island. I attended Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, and Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York. After completing my training in pediatrics and medical genetics. I took my first faculty position at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Then in 2003 I left to join the newly formed genetics department at UAB.

I am married and have three sons. My wife of 27 years, Laurie Marzullo, is a pediatric emergency medicine physician at Children’s Hospital. Our oldest son, Joseph, graduated from Vestavia in 2010 and attended Princeton University, where he played football. Tim graduated Vestavia in 2013 and is a junior at the University of Alabama, and Alex is 17 and is a senior at VHHS. Each had wonderful experiences in the Vestavia Hills school system, with excellent teachers and coaches.” 

What do you think sets the Vestavia Hills School System apart from other systems in the state?

“There are several features that set the Vestavia Hills School System apart. First and foremost is parental involvement. For a student to succeed in school, there must be support at home. Education must be a priority for a community’s school system to excel, and in this community this holds true. Second is the culture of excellence that is seen and felt throughout the system, from the elementary schools through the high school, in the classroom, the ball field and rehearsal hall.”

Do you have any goals for your time as president of the board?

“Right now we as a school system are in an excellent place. We have a tremendous superintendent in Sheila Phillips. She has made more progress in her short tenure than any of us could have expected. But to answer your question directly, the most important issue that we face today is the growing number of students in the system. It is not surprising people want to move to Vestavia to take advantage of our excellent school system. To meet the needs of an increasing student population will require decisions that address not only the challenges we face today, but also we must take in to consideration the near and even distant future, all the while making sure that we are using our resources in the most efficient way possible. 

I also want to see us work to increase options for advanced study in the high school. One plan that is being worked on is to do this through partnerships with UAB, Samford, and other local institutes. I think it would be an incredible opportunity for our high school to leverage the educational resources in the Birmingham area.”

What do you think are some of the most important issues in education today?

“There are many, including pressing issues like school safety and potential budget cuts. Montgomery must fund education at the appropriate level. It cannot be used as a political football. One topic that doesn’t get enough attention though is how to most efficiently utilize technology in education. On the one hand, we need to be careful. We don’t need to use a $500 iPad where a pencil and paper will do just as well. On the other hand, the potential benefits that modalities such as distance learning and interactive digital textbooks offer are significant. We also need to be sure that these offerings are available to all students, and not just to the minority that can afford costly educational adjuncts.”