<![CDATA[WILLIS HALL HERALD ONLINE - Robert Robillard P\'35]]>Wed, 27 May 2026 15:36:20 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[Slowbillard Podcast 1]]>Mon, 08 Sep 2025 13:56:38 GMThttps://www.willishallherald.org/robert-robillard-p35/slowbillard-podcast-1PictureI'm showing off my new toy -- a Wavo Podcast mic with a Joby pop guard. Onward with some podcasts! Question: How will it help us improve our ability to compose quality journalism?
Slowbillard podcast 1
 
Hello Herald Heroes, this is your devoted advisor/teacher launching a shot-in-the-dark effort to explore how a new-to-me technology might help me get you more engaged in learning how to compose stories. Also, after thinking about how slowly I speak, I thought you might appreciate having the opportunity to listen to a recording that you can speed up to your warp-speed mind’s abilities. 
 
All this raises some fundamental questions: 
  1. How does this technology help me teach journalism? 
  2. More importantly, how does this technology help us deliver our journalism to our audience?
  3. Who is our audience? Students? Faculty? Staff? Parents? Do we create content that matters to anyone beyond the North Cross community?
  4. What kind of content should we be creating?
  5. When, or really how often should we be publishing our content digitally?
  6. Where, or really what format is or what platforms are most useful for reaching our community/consumers? (If we consider them to be consumers, it makes sense to acknowledge how important it is for us to raise money through ads so that we have money for buying technology.)
  7. Why do we do this thing we call journalism? Let’s make sure we stay focused on the why, which is also the what. What is the point of all of this? I have some strong ideas about this essential question, but I want to hear what you think. Ultimately, you have to care about the stories we create in order for people to care about consuming the content. You students know best what our audience wants, because it is probably what you want. What would you want to read/hear/see?
  8. How do we create content? How do we compose stories worth reading/hearing/seeing? 
https://www.loom.com/share/cd2d4d30d9ae4443850e026393329a15?sid=6a8bc9fb-5fb5-4ede-8d4b-7c5f422879f7
]]><![CDATA[Gratitude]]>Fri, 02 Dec 2022 19:59:52 GMThttps://www.willishallherald.org/robert-robillard-p35/gratitude​That is a tough act to follow. I always heard that you never want to share the stage with cute dogs or cuter kids.
But seeing my daughter dance with the rest of the ECP kids and our footballfriends warms my heart and reminds me why I love being here.
I’m grateful for the opportunity to say something today. Some of you may know that I’m writing an update of the school’s history. I think of the project as a thank-you to the school for all it has done for me – especially since my accident two years ago. But the truth is that very few people will read that story (and I’m generally optimistic), so I’m glad to have the chance to make my gratitude public. It occurred to me that in order to be truly grateful, I need to be aware of all the gifts people have given me. It seems almost impossible to keep 
To be brief, there are a few groups of people I want to thank:
  1. First, the Leadership Team led by our new Head of School Thank Armistead Lemon for making this wonderful idea a reality. I love it.
  2. Thank you to the parents – like the Bloomfields who helped lead a Go Fund Me that supported me and my family through tough times. Nearly 200 people contributed to that fund.
  3. Thank you to the faculty – so many of whom helped feed and support my family – led by Mr. Belderes and Mrs. Jackson.
  4. And staff – who have made every aspect of my experience on campus better.
  5. Thank you to the students – especially the fearless 15 members of the Herald staff who help keep journalism alive. We’re going to pass out our first issue tomorrow! 
When I’m on campus, people go out their way to help me – holding a door open, helping me get something I cannot reach, or just chatting. I feel so fortunate – and I’m grateful to all of you!
  1. Of course, thank you to Abby for being such a great daughter to me and Melissa. And to my wife for being my superhero.
In fact, I read that gratitude is a superpower. It was in a children’s book, so it must be true! Perhaps everyone can take a moment and think of saying thank you to someone who might really need to hear it.
]]><![CDATA[Giving Thanks]]>Fri, 02 Dec 2022 19:56:53 GMThttps://www.willishallherald.org/robert-robillard-p35/giving-thanks]]><![CDATA[Profile]]>Mon, 20 Sep 2021 00:38:39 GMThttps://www.willishallherald.org/robert-robillard-p35/profile-by-ani-eaganBy Ani Eagan

​Growing up in California, Robert Robillard originally thought he would go on to be a businessman, but after being taught by a few teachers that he really looked up to, he realized that he also wanted to be a teacher and have that effect on students as well.

Robillard has been teaching at NCS for 11 years, originally coming here when his wife got a job at VT. He’d taught at other places before, originally becoming a teacher because of the positive impact some of his teachers had on him when he was a student. In high school, he became part of the school newspaper and it became his favorite part of school from then on. His journalism teacher became someone he looked up to and being able to contribute to the newspaper contributed to some of his best memories from high school. 

”They all inspired me to learn," he said, "so I wanted to be like them.” Still now he loves Journalism and writing, taking writing courses online and of course teaching journalism at school. 

Though he is teaching something he enjoys, his favorite part of being a teacher is not the subject he teaches but getting to interact and bond with the students. Getting to go on several trips with the school, he's been able to bond with the students outside of a normal classroom setting. 

“Those are the times when I really connect with students outside the classroom in meaningful and fun ways.”

He’s gone on many trips with students to places like Italy, China, Austria, England, and much more. It’s given him a chance to create bonds with students and get to travel to many different places which he also enjoys. He’s traveled outside of school as well, even waiting tables for a year at a seaside resort in Germany.

One of his favorite things about Roanoke is the natural beauty that it has to offer. 

“It is so beautiful, with the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Roanoke River,” he said. “The air is so clean most of the year.” 

He likes spending time outside and one of his passions was cycling. Having biked from California to Minnesota, it was one of his favorite things to do. He averaged 2,000 miles cycling a year and even biked 200 miles in one day in the Davis Double Century. He went to college in Davis as well, which even is home to the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame. 

​After coming to North Cross he’s had a lot of roles here, having been the director of global studies and even coaching tennis for some time. Again, what he really loves about getting to teach is being around the students. Connecting with the kids is very important to him.

"I'm so lucky to be teaching again, especially Journalism," Robillard said. "It is vital that we learn to find the facts and show the truth to our community." 


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