Dr. Justin Robertson
Hamilton County Schools has a new chief of operations and chief of schools. Dr. Justin Robertson, chief schools officer for the system for the past two years, will move to chief of operations. Dr. Neelie Parker, the executive director of the North River Learning Community, will become the new chief of schools.
The two will begin their new roles immediately. Both Dr. Robertson and Dr. Parker have family roots in the community, and they have experience at the school and district level for Hamilton County Schools, school officials said.
Dr. Robertson has worked in curriculum and instruction at the central administration level as assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, and chief schools officer since 2016. He will now take charge of the support roles of transportation, school nutrition, maintenance, facilities, student discipline, technology, and other non-academic services. Dr. Robertson will work directly with MGT, a national facility assessment company, as they continue to develop a 10-year facility master report that will include additional community meetings in late January before the final recommendation report is shared with the Hamilton County Board of Education.
Dr. Robertson takes over for Dr. Kenneth Bradshaw, who left the district earlier this year to become superintendent of Richmond County Schools in Augusta, Ga.
Before being named assistant superintendent in 2016, Dr. Robertson served as a principal at Red Bank High School, Brown Middle School, and Lookout Valley Elementary in Hamilton County. Before returning home to Chattanooga, Dr. Robertson was a teacher at Germantown High School and an assistant principal in Shelby County Schools.
Dr. Robertson holds degrees from Union University and Lipscomb University.
Dr. Parker will take on the challenge of continuing the academic growth and success of the past couple of years, said officials. Dr. Parker has been a teacher, school administrator, and district level administrator for Hamilton County Schools. She helped to start the learning community concept in the district and has served as the first North River Learning Community executive director.
Dr. Parker has served as director of elementary schools since 2015 for Hamilton County Schools. She was principal at Big Ridge Elementary for six years and spent seven years as principal of East Lake Elementary before leaving the school level to work with all elementary schools in the district. Dr. Parker also served as assistant principal at Calvin Donaldson Elementary and taught at East Brainerd Elementary in Hamilton County Schools. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee and earned her master’s and a doctorate from Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville.
“The district is in a good position with talented individuals available to fill these vital posts serving the children of the community,” said Dr. Bryan Johnson, superintendent of Hamilton County Schools. “Dr. Robertson is very familiar with the operations of schools at the district and school level, and Dr. Parker has been with us through our academic transformation over the past two years. Both will be able to step right into these new roles and continue our progress to become the best school district in Tennessee.”
Dr. Neelie Parker