FACULTY AND STAFF

Tim McWilliams, Headmaster
HWA is a great place to work:  I'm surrounded by talented, smart, motivated students who are guided by caring, talented, smart, motivated teachers–and the best administrative assistant anywhere! In my thirty-second year as a fulltime educator and sixth year as HWA's Headmaster, I've never experienced such a dynamic, wonderful educational setting. The HWA experience reminds me a lot of my upbringing in Los Alamos, New Mexico, where my father was a mathematician for the National Nuclear Science Lab: smart people who studied and worked hard, and they played hard in a healthy, beautiful, outdoor environment.

I taught two years at a liberal arts college, eighteen years in a tiny, Montana, rural mountain town (junior and senior high), one year at Bozeman's Sacajawea Middle School, and the rest has been at Headwaters Academy as a teacher and then as the administrator.  

I believe that a variety of life experiences is important for an administrator. Before getting involved in education, I worked fulltime for three years as the main photographer for a national publishing firm, had a popular series of educational books on photography published, and did a lot of photo work for northwest publications as well as for the 1974 World's Fair. Once in education, I spent summers working as a wilderness ranger and guide, personally building my family's home in NW Montana, leading multi-week northern Canadian river canoe trips, and, by citizens' request, spearheaded a NW Montana human rights' efforts against neo-Nazis and a few con artists. Life has never been boring!

FACULTY BIOS
The bios were written by the faculty members. It can be embarrassing to write your own bio; some are written in first person, some in third person. The information in the brackets [] was added by Tim McWilliams. The bios are listed alphabetically, by last name.

Sandy Birrell
With thirty-four years of teaching experience and a masters degree in mathematics education, I've taught middle school, high school, and junior college in a variety of settings. I have been fortunate to spend the last fifteen of those years in Headwaters Academy's supportive, caring, friendly and academic atmosphere. Since HWA has small classes, I get the privilege of helping and watching each student grow and mature–academically, socially, emotionally. In my spare time, I enjoy photography, scrapbooking, and traveling.

[Former students always ask to visit with Mrs. Birrell when they come back to visit HWA. You will learn your math in her class, and, after you graduate from high school or college, chances are good that you'll tell friends that she was the best math teacher you ever had. In fact, the Montana chapter of MATHCOUNTS knows how good Mrs. Birrell is; they honored her with their 2010 MATHCOUNTS "Champion" award.]

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