Roberts Named Information Integration VP and CIO

OBU has appointed Paul W. Roberts as Vice President for Information Integration and Chief Information Officer. Roberts, who will also retain his role as Dean of Library Services, will use his new position to integrate technology and access to information into the entirety of university life.

"This position provides strategic and tactical planning for all aspects of technology integration, facilitates communications, and manages projects and priorities related to technology use and information access," said OBU President Dr. David Whitlock. "Paul has high hopes and grand designs for this new role."

As CIO, Roberts will report directly to the university president. He will provide vision and leadership in the planning, development and implementation of university wide information systems and services. Roberts will also work to ensure the coherent integration of services into all aspects of university life, including academic services, student services, business services and institutional advancement.

Roberts, who joined the OBU staff in 2012 as Dean of Library Services, is currently pursuing a doctorate in church history at the Theologische Universiteit Kampen voor de Gereformeerde Kerken in The Netherlands. Roberts earned a Bachelor of Arts in biblical studies from Central Baptist College; a Master of Divinity in biblical and theological studies from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; a Master of Science in Library Science in library and information science from the University of Kentucky; and a Master of Theology in reformation studies from the Reformed Theological Seminary.

Roberts served four years as director of patron services for the James P. Boyce Centennial Library at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He previously served at the library as reference librarian and systems coordinator and archival assistant. He has also served as preaching pastor in a bi-vocational role at several churches since 1999. He is the author of numerous academic publications and papers, as well as numerous library publications and presentations.

Roberts was a member of the Quality Enhancement Plan Leadership Team at Southern Seminary as part of the institution's 2012 accreditation reaffirmation review. He has served as an instructor of the Graduate Research Seminar for the seminary's Department of Research Doctoral Studies and an instructor of Project Methodology for the seminary's Department of Professional Doctoral Studies. He has been a guest lecturer in library introduction and English I and II at Boyce College since 2007. For two years, he served as professor of biblical languages, including Greek and Hebrew, at Simmons College of Kentucky.