While she had a short tenure as athletic director, Diane Baker Roberts has had a long run as an educator and coach in Carson City in which she has made many contributions.
Roberts will step down as Carson High's athletic director after she finishes serving her second year in the postion at the end of this school year. Roberts said she is also leaning toward retiring as a teach as well. "I am stepping down as athletic director for sure," Roberts said.
"I haven't made the complete decision, but it looks that way," said Roberts about if she'll retire as a teacher as well. "I'm leaning that way."
Roberts said she could "shock" people and stay on as a teacher, but that it isn't likely. She said she had planned to stay on longer as athletic director, but the time constraints of the position had become too demanding.
"There are some personal reasons I don't need to go into," said Roberts about why she's stepping down as athletic director, adding she would like to spend more time with her family. "Time-wise, being athletic director was hard on my family."
Roberts graduated from Carson High in 1975 where she was a top tennis player in her own right. After attending the University of Nevada where she majored in health and physical education and minored in math, she began her 29-year career in Carson City in 1979 as a truant officer at CHS.
She became a health and P.E. teacher at CHS in 1981 and then moved over to Eagle Valley Middle School in 1982 where she taught math and P.E. She had two stints as the CHS girls tennis coach, serving from the early 1980s to 1994 and then again recently for several years before leaving that position after the 2006 season.
She also coached softball at CHS and was the varsity coach before John Sullivan took over. "I left him that championship team," said Roberts, jokingly, commenting on the state title CHS won in softball under Sullivan in the mid-1990s.
In addition, Roberts coached skiing before Jack Reinhardt took over the program and from 1982-1992 coached boys basketball at Eagle Valley.
Roberts said some kind of return to coaching could be in her future. "You never know," she said. "I'm going to take some time off, I think."
When asked to talk about her accomplishments as athletic director, Roberts jokingly said, "I attended a lot of events I can tell you that."
On a more serious note, she said, "I think I gave it my best in the two years as athletic director.
"I think I made a few differences there in the department. I've met some great people. I think I put my heart and soul into doing it."
Roberts has overseen a period of great transition as there has been numerous coaching changes at Carson in the last two years.
"I think there's been a lot of good coaches coming in," Roberts said. "They do it for the love of the game."
Roberts said something else that has been gratifying has been seeing an increase in school spirit over the past two years.
"You take away great memories," Roberts said. "I think 90 percent of your memories are going to be good ones."
The search for Roberts' replacement should begin in earnest after this week's spring break.