February 11, 2016

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

There are a variety of characteristics that I picture in an excellent administrator: strong teacher, learner,
articulator, organizer, problem solver, team builder, innovator, leader, and servant. Ms. Robertson is all
of these and more. In the time that I have been working with her over the past year, I have become
more and more impressed with the qualities that she has brought to her mathematics department.
All strong teachers are willing learners. Ms. Robertson has demonstrated time and again that she is not
only willing to learn content, but is willing to add engagement strategies to further facilitate her
departments understanding of the new content and of course brings these strategies into the
classroom. The willingness to stretch yourself as a learner and teacher and then guide your department
to do the same is a critical part of an administrator who will be an educational leader.
No leader can be effective if he or she cannot communicate his or her vision for change. Ms. Robertson
is articulate in both speaking and writing. She is persuasive when the need arises and firm when the
situation demands. The charisma that embodies her personality is communicated in a friendly but true
leadership style. She demonstrates good communication one-on-one and in a large group setting.
Ms. Robertson has had to be the consummate problem solver on her campus. Teacher shortages, large
class sizes, changing staff and changing curriculum challenges have been met with a pro-active heads-up
hands-on approach. She intuitively and independently took on training of her very inexperienced
department and has intervened in many situations to not solve problems, but to prevent the problems
from even occurring. Her vision of understanding what needs to be done and the organizational skills to
carry them out has made her department continue to grow despite the difficulties they are facing.
The most important quality, to me personally, in a leader is servanthood. Lindsey truly is a servant
towards her department and her students. She actively seeks ways to educate and serve her school
community. She puts the needs of others above herself and seeks to achieve the goals of the greater
good above and beyond her own. She is driven but not be served but to lead and better those around
her. It is completely without reservation that I can recommend and encourage her to become an
educational leader.

Sincerely,
Kim Baerwald
Kim Baerwald
Instructional Leadership Coordinator
Math and Science
Tolleson Union High School District