Native Houston Leadership
Growing up in Houston, Abbey Roberson's playgrounds were Hermann Park and the Museum District. Her earliest memories are of visiting the Children's Museum of Houston, and as she got older, she and her classmates went on field trips to the various museums in Houston's famous Museum District. A native Houstonian, free shows at Miller Outdoor Theatre were a regular occurrence.
It makes sense that Abbey didn't pay much attention to the Texas Medical Center (TMC) as a child. The big hospital buildings were simply the backdrop to her childhood. Her perspective changed as an adult. The built environment became her focus when she earned a Bachelor of Environmental Design from Texas A&M and then went to the Georgia Institute of Technology for a Masters in City and Regional Planning. Her very active career took her to Atlanta and Washington, D.C., before she came home and became VP of Campus Planning for TMC. Her job includes strategizing about today's issues while planning for tomorrow's challenges.
Abbey explains what it's all about: Helix Park is coming [LINK 1]
Participation in the South Main Alliance (SMA) is one of her favorite job responsibilities. She engaged in SMA over 10 years ago on behalf of TMC soon after starting her position. Abbey started with SMA's transportation committee and found herself in the middle of important discussions around improving the area's infrastructure and mobility. Her participation connected her to fellow professionals and leaders throughout the South Main Corridor. She later served as SMA's board chair and became a member of the executive committee. Throughout, she's relished the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues up and down the Corridor to creatively problem-solve their common issues.
Abbey welcomes the opportunity to give back to her home city. Balancing her position with TMC while also serving as an SMA executive member and board member for a few other community organizations is challenging, but she appreciates the opportunity to grow and expand her impact. She often brings her children to the museums and to Miller Outdoor Theatre and enjoys watching the area become such an important part of her family's memories. She values being part of an organization working to improve the larger community for the benefit of not just those living and working in the area, but for the city as a whole.