Interviewer: What is your name?
Teresa: Teresa Roberts
Interviewer: What is your position at CSA?
Teresa: Vice President, People and Culture Operations
Interviewer: What does that position entail?
Teresa: I am fortunate enough to get to work with and support the folks I call our “internal clients”—which are our staff and independent contractors. I consider the most important part of my job to be championing our unique company culture and making sure that our entirely remote team feels connected and valued. My team also provides the internal structure of CSA—making sure all the gears and wheels are moving so that our staff has the tools they need to be able to do their jobs effectively.
Interviewer: How did you become a part of CSA?
Teresa: I fell into Educational Publishing completely by chance. After my entire team was laid off due to budget cuts at my former employer, I began freelancing and looking around for some part-time work to fill in the blanks. I got a temp job typing and answering the phones at CSA 18 years ago. It wasn’t long until that job turned into a full-time position, and I started taking on more and more responsibilities. I developed, grew, and managed the Alignment Services department for several years before moving to the back-of-the-house to take over the Human Resources function.
Interviewer: What is the best part of your job?
Teresa: Honestly? It’s any time I get to let my hair down a bit and have fun with my co-workers. I love putting together monthly Game Breaks, social gatherings, assisting the Wellness Committee with regular initiatives and challenges, and encouraging folks to connect in our all-company chat group/virtual water cooler. Employee engagement and culture-building is the absolute best part of my gig.
Interviewer: What do you wish people knew about your work at CSA?
Teresa: In addition to working with the internal staff, I am also on the support committee for Team CSA, which is what we call our stellar group of independent contractors. We know just how essential our freelancers are to our success, and we quite literally couldn’t exist without their skill and expertise. We developed a program to provide resources, such as a monthly newsletter and a private website full of resources in order to give them the support they need. I think the program has made a significant impact in helping our freelancers feel valued and appreciated for the work they do.
Interviewer: What do you wish schools focused on more in terms of education and why?
Teresa: I am so glad to see publishers turning a wider lens on antiracism, social-emotional learning, and neurodiversity in their programs. I can only hope that expanded focus continues to take hold in classrooms at all age and grade levels.
Interviewer: What are three interesting facts about you?
Teresa: One of my favorite hobbies is competitive puzzling. The competitions usually involve word and logic puzzles and sometimes last for several hours at a time. I love a good Reuben sandwich, which was invented in my hometown of Omaha, NE (sorry, New Yorkers, it’s true), and I even have a rating scale for them. One of my bucket list items is visiting every U.S. national park. My partner and I added the Smoky Mountains last fall, and we’re halfway to meeting that goal!
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