Leadership Team
UWC-USA’s acting head of school, Dr. Andrew Mahlstedt, directs the leadership team to manage the operation of the school. Along with Dr. Mahlstedt, the leadership team’s primary focus is the UWC mission and the success, health, and well-being of the students.
With distinguished backgrounds and broad experience in schools, these administrators build relationships with students, National Committees, parents, partners, alumni, other UWC schools, and donors to advance the UWC mission at UWC-USA.
"Our diversity supercharges our learning both in the classroom and in less formal learning environments. Students are challenged in dorm conversations, academic discussions, and expeditions to take the perspectives of their peers into account A conversation about borders will land differently for a U.S. student from Arizona and a student from Ukraine and a student from Rwanda. This generates learning at UWC-USA in a way that other schools can only imagine."
Victoria Mora
President (on leave)
Victoria Mora
President (on leave)If you had to choose one value or element of the UWC mission that you think is most important, which would it be?
I believe that the great work of the UWC movement is building positive relationships between people who might otherwise be at odds with each other for historical, cultural, or socio-economic reasons. Friendship is natural to young people. They don’t yet have prejudices that are set in stone. With the kinds of opportunities provided at UWC-USA, they find joy across differences, working, living, and playing together.
Which tradition or annual event at UWC-USA holds particular meaning for you?
That’s a tough call. The Welcome Ceremony is wonderful. The students wave their flags proudly and cheer one another on. The Matriculation Ceremony is a little different. The students sign the matriculation book to formally become part of the school and the UWC movement. Each student is called into community by the previous student signing the book. There is something deeply moving about each student respectfully pronouncing a new name, a new country. It’s what the school is really about. respectfully. when students sign the matriculation book and formally become part of the school and the UWC movement. For many it’s the first time they realize the breadth and depth of the UWC organization. It’s both moving and joyous.
What quality do our students consistently display that you admire most?
The quality I most love about our students is their openness to try to understand the other. They challenge their own views and opinions as much as they challenge the views and opinions of others. They don’t let themselves settle for “I.” They get the “We” and its vital importance for the future.
What do you do routinely in your work to enhance or improve the educational experience of our students?
What a pleasure it is to meet with people who already know UWC-USA and to introduce it to others for the first time!
Education
BA, University of New Mexico,
PhD, Yale University
Todd Austin
Special Assistant to the President for Strategic Initiatives
Todd Austin
Special Assistant to the President for Strategic InitiativesIf you had to choose one value or element of the UWC mission that you think is most important, which would it be?
I think all educational institutions should include a concern for a sustainable future in their mission statement so I’m thrilled the UWC mission includes it.
Which tradition or annual event at UWC-USA holds particular meaning to you?
I joined the UWC-USA leadership team in October 2019. Shortly after my arrival the pandemic arrived. As a result of this development and others (i.e., a major wildfire evacuation), I still haven’t fully experienced all the traditions and events at UWC-USA. Two moments, which happen every year but have happened differently in each of my three years on campus, stand out for me — the great departure of new graduates from campus in the spring and the great arrival of first-year students in August. It’s incredibly poignant to see group after group of graduates set out from this place, in one humble UWC-USA bus after another, destined for so many different universities and so many different futures. It’s just as moving to welcome one new group of first-year students after another, in those same humble buses, as they gather here for the first time from all corners of the world.
What quality do our students consistently display that you admire most?
I most admire our students’ courage and curiosity to leave home at the age of 17 to complete their secondary education in our two-year program. I left home at that age for an eight-week summer program abroad and was quite ready at the end to return home for my senior year of high school. They’re taking on a much bigger challenge.
What do you do routinely in your work to enhance or improve the educational experience of our students?
I hope my daily work enhances student experience in the moment and improves it over the short and long terms. Including students in our long-term strategy discussions, asking “what could UWC-USA be in its second half-century?”, opens their eyes to new possibilities for the school and enlists their imaginations. We strive to “innovate for impact,” with an emphasis on advancing our mission in the world. As the school’s primary stakeholders, our students make invaluable contributions to these discussions. Between these sessions, I work closely with the school’s leadership team to make sure we are taking concrete action to “strengthen the foundation” by improving our current educational program, institutional systems, and campus facilities. Our students contribute to this work too as they embrace Kurt Hahn’s timeless insight: “We are crew, not passengers, strengthened by acts of consequential service to others.”
Education
B.A. in history, The University of Texas at Austin.
Master’s in theological studies, Spring Hill College, the Jesuit College of the South in Mobile, Ala.
M.A. in independent school leadership, Columbia University in New York City.
Kimi Jackson ’92
Associate Head for Finance and Operations
Kimi Jackson ’92
Associate Head for Finance and OperationsIf you had to choose one value or element of the UWC mission that you think is most important, which would it be?
UWC-USA’s mission is about education. Learning requires a curiosity about the world around us. Curiosity about the world and a desire to learn is key to bringing us toward a peaceful and sustainable future.
Which tradition or annual event at UWC-USA holds particular meaning for you?
During my time as a student at UWC-USA, I remember the joy students experienced during the first snow of the year. For some students, it was their first time seeing snow. For me, it was my first time seeing snow in the mountains. I still love it and despite the extra work it causes for our facilities team members who are tasked with removing snow, I love it when it snows on campus.
What quality do our students consistently display that you admire most?
I love the creativity of our students. Their potential is endless.
What do you do routinely in your work to enhance or improve the educational experience of our students?
I do my best to steward UWC-USA’s resources and to take care of our campus and our employees, for the benefit of our current and future students.
Education
BA, University of Minnesota at Morris
JD, University of Denver Sturm College of Law
Andrew Mahlstedt
Acting Head of School
Andrew Mahlstedt
Acting Head of SchoolIf you had to choose one value or element of the UWC mission that you think is most important, which would it be?
When I joined UWC, the mission statement was much longer (too long), so they changed it to the current one around 2004. They moved most of the language to the values, but they forgot one key word that was in the original mission statement: justice. (I’d actually re-write the current mission statement slightly: UWC makes education a force for peace, justice, and a sustainable future.)
Which tradition or annual event at UWC-USA holds particular meaning for you?
I’m looking forward to learning about the cultures of UWC-USA, but at other UWCs I have always loved the messy work of gathering the whole community in one room to discuss whatever the topic is at hand. I love how flat and open conversation is (or can be).
What quality do our students consistently display that you admire most?
Another crucial UWC value that is not listed in the mission or values is what we might call “questioning authority.” The authorities that have made the world as it is need a lot of questioning. So I’ve long viewed one of the most important aspects of a UWC education to be helping young people learn strategies to do this effectively, and for everyone in positions of authority to hold space for others to question their authority.
Please describe a couple of things you do routinely in your work to enhance or improve the educational experience of our students.
Though I’m new in the role, it will be really important for me to make sure I get to know students well — I’d love to sit with students when I eat in the dining hall, for example. Otherwise, I’ve found in previous roles like this that when “the administration” works best, it’s somewhat invisible — it is making the system of the school work seamlessly so students and educators can get on with their work. But I’m sure I’ll learn a lot in my first year, so let’s see!
Mark Hodde ’89
Chief Advancement Officer
Mark Hodde ’89
Chief Advancement OfficerIf you had to choose one value or element of the UWC mission that you think is most important, which would it be?
As an alumnus from the class of ’89 I can speak to the ways that very different people become part of a powerful community at UWC-USA. The UWC mission is about building bridges and relationships for peace and a sustainable world. I’ve lived that part of the mission and I know how important it is.
Which tradition or annual event at UWC-USA holds particular meaning for you?
Graduation holds particular meaning for me because it’s the moment when the work we’ve been doing as a community in Montezuma ends and the work of a lifetime for our alumni begins. Graduation is poignant, somber, celebratory, and compelling. I love that it is both a beginning and an ending.
What quality do our students consistently display that you admire most?
I admire how our students look ahead. They don’t wallow in the past or obsess over the present. They look ahead and think carefully about how they want to be better global citizens.
Please describe a couple of things you do routinely in your work to enhance or improve the educational experience of our students.
My first job is to share the mission and the UWC-USA story with alumni and friends to secure the funding that we need to provide scholarships and support for the school. I spend a lot of time traveling to meet donors and writing letters.
Education
BA, CSU-San Bernardino
MPA, USC
