Explore Our Curriculum

School Level

Department

IB

Stephen Beatty

MS & HS Film Guide

s.beatty@headwaters.org
Bio
I was born in Germany to Army officer parents and moved every couple of years while growing up. I majored in film at TCU. When I graduated, I got a job at the local CBS station as a camera operator and eventual floor director.

I began substitute teaching on my days off to supplement my income. One day after school, one of the teachers commented how great I was with the kids and that I should consider teaching. Thus began my career shift into education. I’ve taught a total of 13 years in public schools and I could not be more excited for the next chapter in my life.

Headwaters is an absolute dream come true for me as an educator. The holistic approach to education is not something you find every day. Positive relationships and trust are the cornerstones to the successful student/educator dynamic. I am beyond proud to be joining the Headwaters faculty!
Tia Butler

HS English Guide

Whitman College, BA
University of Texas at Austin, PhD

t.butler@headwaters.org
Bio
I was born and raising in western Washington state, just north of Seattle, in a small town called Arlington. Growing up, I was an avid rider, competing regularly in show jumping competitions with my best friend and horse, Andy. After his retirement, and my graduation from High School, I received my BA in Spanish Language and Literature at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. While pursuing my BA, I travelled abroad to Madrid and fell in love with the vibrant city and culture. This would spark a life-long passion for travel and reading World Literature.

After graduating from Whitman College, I began to pursue my PhD at the University of Texas (Hook Em’) here in beautiful Austin. I will be defending my dissertation, Haiti in Hollywood, this coming December 2021, and completing my doctorate in Comparative Literature. My research has focused on the portrayal of Latin American and Caribbean Diasporic groups in popular literature and media in the United States, with a particular focus on the US relationship with Haiti. I received a Foreign Language Education Scholarship in 2015 that allowed me to travel to Haiti to conduct research and take courses in Haitian Creole. Kreyol pale, Kreyol comprann!

Travel, whether in person or through literature, has become a key component of my life and classroom. Literature offers us the ability to learn, see, visit other cultures, and in my opinion, is our greatest tool to becoming empathic persons of the world. I was drawn to Headwaters School, and teaching in general, because I want to help students see the diverse array of literature that the world has to offer. I strive to make a community impact and foster excellence in written and verbal communications skills.

At UT Austin I worked as an Assistant Instructor in the Department of Rhetoric and Writing, and in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, gaining five-years of teaching experience. In 2018 I was given the opportunity to design a course. My self-made class was titled The Rhetoric of Witchcraft and invited students to contemplate the role that contemporary media and literature has played in demonizing women, healers, and religious leaders from non-Christian faiths across the US. My course was grounded in Affect Theory to look at the ways that constant negative representation can warp our views and discourses on marginalized groups.

Today, I live in North Austin with my partner, James, and our three dogs and cat, who totally get along. When I am not reading or writing, I love relaxing with something bingeable on in the background (Bobs Burgers and The Office are my go to’s) or taking in sights and sounds on a long walk or hike.
Kelly Dickens

HS Math Guide

University of Texas at Austin

k.dickens@headwaters.org
Bio
Being and working with teenagers and children brings me joy. I love being surrounded by people (students and staff) engaged in continual learning and growth. I completed a B.A. in Mathematics at UT-Austin, concurrently earning a Texas Teacher’s Certification in Secondary Mathematics and supporting myself by private tutoring. After teaching for Eanes ISD, I detoured into actuarial mathematics. While working as an actuary for 15 years, my wife Linda and I started our family. Our older son, Michael, started at Headwaters in sixth grade, and was soon joined by his brother, Joel. Being a part of this community inspired me to return to teaching, and Linda to serve on the Board of Directors. I am so grateful to have a vocation in which I am called upon to share what matters most.
Grady Eglin

HS Physics & Math

g.eglin@headwaters.org
Lidia Galarza

MS/HS Spanish Guide

The George Washington University
Ohio University
Universidad San Martin de Porres - Lima/ Perú

l.galarza@headwaters.org
Bio
It is my pleasure to join the Headwaters Community as a Spanish guide, and I am looking forward to welcoming all my students for the upcoming year.

I was born and raised in Lima, Peru where I received a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Universidad San Martin de Porres. Upon moving to the United States, I obtained a Master’s Degree in International Affairs from Ohio University and a Master’s Degree in Economics from George Washington University in Washington, DC. While working in the fields of Economics and International Affairs, I had the opportunity to interact with people from diverse backgrounds, giving me a deep appreciation of different cultures, perspectives, and languages. Moreover, it taught me the importance of humility and open-mindedness.

I am fascinated by the incredible aptitude of young minds. For the past fifteen years, I have worked in private, public, and international schools from the elementary to high school level. I am an IB trained teacher with state certifications in Foreign Languages and Bilingual Education. I am excited to have the opportunity to share my native language with others, so they may find the same love and appreciation of foreign languages and cultures I have.

I was attracted to Headwaters’ strong sense of community and academic program that culminates with the IB Diploma.
David Heroy

MS/HS Science Guide & Outdoor Leadership

d.heroy@headwaters.org
Bio
As a kid, I spent nine summers at Nature Camp in Baltimore while attending Gilman School. Since 2008, I have been teaching Environmental Science and Outdoor Leadership at Headwaters. I wanted to be a professor for many years, and published research on climate change and did field work in Antarctica and Bangladesh. My research was presented at Cambridge, UK and was written-up in the journals Science and Discover, among others. But I found my true calling in teaching and being with the youth. I have a BA from Colgate, a MS from William and Mary, and a PhD from Rice. After college, I attended NOLS, Outward Bound, and I've led backpacking trips in California under my own LLC. Finally, I was Assistant Guide for 1st-3rd graders here in Austin at Parkside Montessori, led a cabin at Global Youth Peace Summit, and taught at Lee College in Baytown, TX. Perhaps my most proud achievement, I founded Blackwood Nature Camp in Hempstead, Texas, which received a national award and is still going today. But best of all, in 2003 I met a beautiful architect at a swing dance class. We got married, have two girls named Cleo and Marion, and our dog's name is Hero.
Jen Masterson

HS English Guide

BA University of Texas at Austin
MFA New England College
MSW University of Texas at Arlington

j.masterson@headwaters.org
Bio
Though notoriously bad at remembering even the most basic jokes, I am the very first person in the room to laugh at them (again and again). I can even be accidentally hysterical too. Red is currently my favorite color, and Nordic detective shows are my go-to when there are no new Survivor episodes to watch with my family.

In 1982 I earned 2nd place in Mendenhall Elementary’s spelling bee (lost on the word galactic) and snagged a blue ribbon in a field day foot race the next year. However, the prizes I am most proud of from that time in my life are a perfect attendance certificate (no days missed in six years) and the almost life-size John Travolta coloring book I received on my 10th birthday.

More recently, I studied English at UT Austin and then went on to get an MFA in Creative Writing at New England College and an MSW in Children & Families at UT Arlington. Previously, I taught English, creative writing, and PSAT/SAT test prep at Cedar Park High School, where I was also a UIL coach and the Gay-Straight Alliance club sponsor. For the past four years, I’ve been a therapist and mental health advocate. In May, I felt an impossible-to-ignore call to return to my first love: the classroom.

Headwaters School had me at student-led. I knew I wanted to be a part of a community whose promise is to “live authentically, think expansively, and create bravely.” Y’all are my people indeed. Please come find me and tell me a story, teach me a trick, or share a few tidbits about what currently interests you. I’m looking forward to connecting with each of you.
Alison McMillin

a.mcmillin@headwaters.org
Bio
I started elementary school in Austin, but after the 3rd grade, my formative years were split between small-town Louisiana and big-city Paris, France. I have been a student of the arts for as far back as I can remember, recognizing that visual arts can express complexities beyond what I can share with language. I earned the French Baccalauréat in Arts and Letters as a high school graduate, a Bachelors of Fine Arts from UT Austin and I studied ceramics, calligraphy and indigo dyeing while teaching English as a Second Language in Japan for 5 years. I have found that I love teaching just as much as creating, going back to school while working with teens in transition from foster care for a Masters in Education, with a focus on secondary arts, from Texas State. For the past 7 years, I have taught Art, Graphic Design, AP Art History and IBDP Visual Arts at the middle and high school levels. I prefer the IB way, because it is centered around individual student interests and helps forge connections to others, and I cannot wait to meet each and every one of you! My formal training includes film photography, printing, metalsmithing, fiber arts, ceramics....I have discovered that having learned a bit of everything enables me to have plenty of know-how to help all kinds of projects see the light of day. As an artist I have shown locally, and in New Orleans, New York, Tokyo and Osaka, although the past 7 years I have been more focused on being my son Orion's early childhood side-kick. Additionally, I have worked as an intern and an assistant to a green design and architectural non-profit, a ceramist and a jeweler, and working in the design and art production-line world with masters of their craft has helped me develop a fascination with beautiful forms that are also useful, well-made and give a sense of rhythm to their creator during fabrication. Photography and Digital Art/ Design have no need to stay on the page or screen, we can and we will also make worlds come alive in 3-dimensions, maybe even 4. When I am not thinking about the arts, you can find me exploring nature with friends and family or reading novels.
John Mulvany

MS/HS Art Guide

College of Art, Design and Print, Dublin, Ireland
Sherman College of Art and Design, Cork, Ireland

j.mulvany@headwaters.org
Bio
I am an artist and art educator originally from Ireland who has been living and working in Austin for the last 20 years. I have been teaching art for 25 years and this is my 11th year at Headwaters where I teach studio art in the IB program, the high school and middle school.

Teaching art in collaboration with young people at Headwaters School has been my most rewarding and inspiring experience in education.I graduated from the College of Art, Design and Print in Dublin, Ireland with a Fine Art degree, and I also have a degree in art and design education from the Crawford College of Art in Cork, Ireland. As an artist my work has been shown in Ireland, the UK, Germany, and the U.S. I was featured in the 2009 Texas Biennial and was nominated for best artist in the 2009 Austin Visual Arts Association awards. I was a founding member and editor of Cantanker, an art magazine and non-profit art organization and am a regular participant on the East Austin Studio Tour.

I live in east Austin with my wife, Monique, and our two sons, Henry and Cormac, who are students at the Creek Campus.
Hilda Reilly

HS Spanish Guide

h.reilly@headwaters.org
Stephanie Roach

Director of Student Affairs

s.roach@headwaters.org
Bio
After earning my BS in Sport Management from Georgia Southern University, I decided to pursue a masters degree in education on the advice of my dad. Unbeknownst to me, I would quickly fall in love with teaching and influencing the lives and minds of younger generations. Since then, I have earned a MA in Teaching Middle Grades Education from Armstrong Atlantic State University and another MA in Teaching Mathematics Education from Western Governors University.

For the last decade, I have taught various middle and high school level math classes and coached numerous sports at schools in Georgia, Florida, and Texas. I am very excited to be joining Headwaters and guiding students as they build their mathematical understanding. In my free time, I enjoy traveling, running, biking, and any other outdoor activities as well as taking advantage of the amazing restaurants around Austin!

Springs Campus

List of 1 items.

18 months to Pre-K

6305 Menchaca Rd., Austin, TX 78745
Phone: 512-443-8843
Fax: 512-805-0005

Creek Campus

List of 1 items.

Elementary School

9607 Brodie Ln., Austin, TX 78748
Phone: 512-804-2708
Fax: 512-628-4810

River Campus

List of 1 items.

Middle & High School

801 Rio Grande St., Austin, TX 78701
Phone: 512-480-8142
Fax: 512-480-0278

As a 501(c)3 non-profit school, Headwaters School does not discriminate because of race, color, creed, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other classes protected by federal, state, or local law in its admissions, financial aid, hiring, or board membership processes.