Educator becomes state deputy commissioner

Roger Dorson is the new deputy commissioner for the finance and administrator department.
Roger Dorson is the new deputy commissioner for the finance and administrator department.

Roger Dorson was the second person in his family to get a college degree - his older brother was the first by just one year.

He grew up in Macon from parents who were children of the Depression. His mother was a proud graduate of high school. His father - though he was a smart man - likely didn't make it through grade school, Dorson said. They worked hard and wanted a better life for their children, so graduating college was an important moment in their family's history.

He attended Northeast Missouri State University - now Truman State University - in Kirksville and earned his doctorate in curriculum and instruction at the University of Missouri in Columbia.

Education was a route Dorson said he took naturally.

"I never wanted to do anything else," he said. "I remember it like it was yesterday, my guidance counselors, coaches, teachers."

He's now the deputy commissioner for the financial and administrative services division for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. After spending more than 30 years in public education - and holding nearly every title from teacher to coach, superintendent to adjunct professor - he started working for DESE.

His most recent role has been coordinator of school financial and administrative services and is taking over Ron Lankford's position as deputy commissioner. He closely shadowed Lankford before he retired, so the transition has been fairly smooth, he said.

Of course, with every job, he said he didn't realize how much the job encompassed until he was doing it himself.

The division handles everything from district funding disbursements, district audits, managing DESE's budget and human resources department.

One of his goals coincides with DESE's Top 10 by 20 campaign to make Missouri among the top 10 ranking states by 2020. The campaign has four goals, and one of them is for DESE to improve departmental efficiency and operational effectiveness.

As the new commissioner - who started in July - Dorson said the department has been looking for ways to become more efficient. One of which is by cutting down on some of the positions. Several years ago, the school finance section of the department had 15 employees; it's been pared down to five. A lot of the efficiency is chalked up to using more technology and less paperwork, he said.

For him, working in education has always been about the kids. It's the most rewarding aspect of every education job he's had.

"When you're dealing with finance, the money is going to educating kids," he said. "Except in my case, it isn't just one district, it's all of them."

Dorson lives in Wardsville with his wife, Kathy. They have three children and seven grandchildren.