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Bob Townsend ’70 attributes his success to lessons learned at Perth

When Robert Townsend graduated from the Perth Central School District in 1970, he earned more than just a diploma. He gained skills that he says have been critical to a long and successful career at General Electric and in service to his community.

A three-sport athlete, Bob Townsend P’70 is pictured with the baseball team in the 1969 Perth yearbook. Bob is in the first row on the far right.

Whether he was on Perth’s basketball court or football and baseball fields, Bob learned the importance of teamwork and leadership. “Each member of a team has a role and responsibility, and if he or she fulfills that role, the team will be successful and the entire team gets the recognition,” he says. “Even those who were not on the starting line-up were critical to the team for support and encouragement. Every player has an important part in the success of a team.”

Bob says sports also taught him that a true leader is not always the most skilled, but one that can motivate and lead by example. “During the high school years, I was not the most skilled in any sport, but whatever I participated in I was committed and dedicated to the success of the team.”

For his efforts, Bob was the recipient of the Outstanding Teenager Leadership Award during his senior year.

After high school, Bob attended Fulton-Montgomery Community College and earned an associate degree in science. He transferred to SUNY Plattsburgh where he focused on computer science—an area that was just evolving as a curriculum, but was of great interest to him. After earning a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, Bob started his career with General Electric as a computer programmer. That was the start of his 37-year career at GE in the area of information technology.

Townsend P’70, wearing jersey number 30, played basketball for Perth.

As information technology evolved, so did Bob’s career. He earned several promotions that have led to his current position of Leader of IT Compliance and Financial Services for General Electric’s Global Business Services operation, which supports GE operations around the world.

“My education both at Perth Central School and in the state university system has been the cornerstone of my career and success. It gave me the structure and ability to be a life-long learner, which is paramount during the technology-driven era we live in today,” Bob says. “During those years, my path crossed with many people who were influential in my growth. Many of those were teachers, coaches, principals and staff. Through them, I learned the very important lessons of integrity, honesty and teamwork, all of which have been driving forces in my adult life.”

And because education has given him so much, Bob has made service to his community and to public education a major part of his life over the past 24 years. During his daughters’ school years, Bob participated in many programs, including the Booster Club, PTSO and Odyssey of the Mind. In 1987, he served as a member of the merger study teams for the Perth and Broadalbin Central School Districts.

Bob Townsend P’70 wore number 31 on the Perth football team.

After the districts merged, Bob says his career as a public servant and elected official started. He was elected to the Broadalbin-Perth Central School District Board of Education and served on the board for 15 years until 2002. “During those years, we saw great growth in the school district in programs and facilities,” he says.

Since 1998, Bob has represented Broadalbin-Perth on the Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery BOCES Board of Education and has served as president of the board for the past 10 years. During his tenure, he says HFM BOCES has become a major educational institution serving 15 school districts in the region with a new state-of-the-art Career and Technology Center adjacent to Fulton-Montgomery Community College.

For his dedication to service and the community, Bob received the 2002 Broadalbin-Perth Community Service Award and the 2004 General Electric Gerald L. Phillippe Award, the company’s award for distinguished community service.

Bob Townsend P’70, his wife, Peg, and their daughters, Sarah (top) and Jaclyn (left).

When asked what most stands out in his mind from his time at Perth, Bob remembers the closeness of his class and how important the teachers were in their lives. “It did not matter if you were in athletics, drama or class office, we were all friends and shared in the success of our class and each other,” Bob says. “We were Perth’s largest graduating class, but I feel we were the closest. We respected our teachers and each other.”

And while he says he had many great teachers at Perth Central, Bob says it was Tom Jennings who was the most influential. “Besides being an excellent math teacher, Mr. Jennings was a coach, mentor and friend. He was always there if you needed extra assistance or just needed to talk,” Bob says. “He saw great potential in each of his students and made you believe in yourself. He instilled in us the ability to grow and strive for excellence, which has been instrumental in my success.”

Bob and his wife, Peg, who is also a Perth graduate, are both life-long residents of the area. Peg is a second-grade teacher at The Learning Community and the couple’s daughters, Jaclyn and Sarah, are both graduates of Broadalbin-Perth. The Townsends have clearly shared their passion for education with their children: Jaclyn has a master’s degree in elementary education and works as an elementary teaching assistant at Birchwood Elementary School, which is part of Capital Region BOCES, and Sarah has a doctorate in pharmacy and manages a Target pharmacy in Dallas, Texas.