Roberts started her career at Western Kentucky University in 1974.[2] She founded the Center for Gifted Studies there in 1983,[2] and was instrumental in starting the Kentucky Association for Gifted Education in 1979.[4] After working as an assistant professor and associate professor, she was appointed as a full professor of teacher education in 1989.[2][4][5] She received and was director of several grants from the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Program to research the education of gifted students, including "Restructuring Primary Gifted Education",[5] "Enhancing Educational Opportunities for Gifted Middle School Students",[5] and students from low-income districts and students with English as a second language who were tutored in problem-based lessons in math and science.[6] She led a ten-year advocacy campaign that resulted in establishing the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science, a statewide residential school founded in 2007.[7] She is President of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children,[8] having been elected to its executive committee in 2009. She has been a member of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children since 1986, and has attended 13 World Conferences sponsored by the WCGTC, and was previously its treasurer.[8][3] She is chairperson of The Kentucky Advisory Counsel for Gifted Education, and a member of Kentucky's Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence.[9] She is the co-author with Tracy Inman of the book Strategies for Differentiating Instruction: Best Practices for the Classroom.[7]
