Administrators
Anderson High School Administrators
Principal
Ms. Beth Newton
Beth Newton has worked in AISD for most of her 29 years in education. Prior to being named the Principal of Anderson High School, she was the Principal of Murchison Middle School for the past three and a half years. Ms. Newton served as the Principal of Hill Elementary School for ten years, and Principal of Pease Elementary School for four years. She began her leadership career as Assistant Principal at Menchaca Elementary School, serving their community for four years. Before working in leadership positions, Mrs. Newton was a teacher, in Austin ISD, Highland Park ISD and Houston ISD.
It has been the greatest joy of Mrs. Newton’s life to watch the transformative changes that can happen on a campus when shared leadership is actively in place. She believes strongly in building leadership capacity, establishing a growth mindset and helping students develop academically, socially and emotionally.
Mrs. Newton works with the staff to create strong academic and elective programming on campus, so that all students have the opportunity to graduate college, career and life ready. Through the rigorous academic content at Anderson High School, the IB and AP coursework, On Ramps and Dual Credit classes, as well as the TSTEM programming, Ms. Newton aims to lead her staff in the development of inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.
Beth Newton believes that the establishment of a positive climate and culture is vitally important in creating a safe learning environment. She has done this through strong collaboration with the school community and leadership with staff in developing strong relationships with students.
Mrs. Newton is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, with both undergraduate and graduate degrees in Educational Leadership. Ms. Newton is currently pursuing her EDD at the University of Texas at Austin. She enjoys spending time with her family and children, exercising on Town Lake and reading extensively when she has the opportunity. She also enjoys spending time with her two dogs, Jade and Blue!
Assistant Principals
9th Grade Assistant Principal
Ms. Robin Spencer
Math, Special Education
Robin Spencer hails from the cold wintery climates of the north but has been in Austin for over 25 years. Ms. Spencer attended Ryerson University where she received her B. A. in early childhood education and then attended York University where she received her M.Ed. in primary education. She received her M.Ed. in administration from Concordia University in 2015. When she first arrived in Austin, Ms. Spencer worked as a teacher liaison at a residential treatment center in S. Austin. She first joined the AISD team at Burnet MS then spent the last several years at Murchison MS both as a special education teacher and as an administrator. She joined the Anderson team in February of 2020. Her favorite pastimes are working with Amos, the therapy dog, visiting libraries and nursing homes, rolling around on the floor with her cat Wilie, and playing video games on her PS4.
Last Names A - El
Ms. RoLanda Hood Williams
Social Studies, Fine Arts
Rolanda Hood Williams was born in California and comes from a long line of educators. After moving to Austin as a senior, she graduated from L.C. Anderson High School. She attended Austin Community College after high school then earned her bachelor’s degree from University of North Texas and her master’s in education administration from Lamar University. Her career in education begin in Dallas with the Dallas Independent School District and then she worked for Carrollton-Farmers Branch School district where she taught 3rd and 5th grade in both districts. She relocated to Austin in 2012 and begin working as a middle school English teacher for Austin Independent School District then moved into administration in 2014. She re-joined as an Anderson Trojan in 2018 as an administrator. She is proud to be back at Anderson High School to provide support to all students that she encounters. She educates by the motto, “Every day is a new day. What happened yesterday is in the past.” She knows that her job as an administrator to make sure school is safe, to ensure learning happens every day, and she keeps in the forefront of her mind that students learn at different levels, spaces, and places. In her free time, Ms. Hood Williams likes to spend time with her family and friends and discovering new hiking trails when time permits. Despite your confidence, she will absolutely beat you in a game of bowling and is not shy about getting on the softball field as well.
Last Names Em - La
Assistant Principal - Mr. Jesse Molina
Career and Technical Education, Athletics, DELTA
Last Names Le - Rh
Mr. Michael Shackelford
Science, Health, Physical Education
Michael Shackelford is originally from Birmingham, Alabama, but he's called Austin home since 2004. Michael graduated from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina in 2003, and he received his Master's in Education Leadership and Principal's Certification from the University of North Texas in 2017. Michael worked at O. Henry Middle School from 2009 until 2021; he started as a substitute teacher his first year, became a Social Studies teacher, and eventually became the campus Instructional Coach. He was the head cheerleading coach at O. Henry for eleven years, and he also coached Soccer and Track. Outside of school, you can find Michael enjoying his family and friends or spending time with his dog, Thor, and his cat, Atticus. He enjoys weightlifting and all things Marvel. Michael is very excited to be at Anderson High School, and he's even more excited to be a part of this amazing community!
Last Names Ri - Z
Mr. Brian Lancaster
English, World Languages
Brian Lancaster grew up mostly in Colorado Springs, and attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO. He began college as an Electrical Engineering major with an Air Force ROTC scholarship, but struggled with the initial thought: "Wait a minute, I don't feel passionate about this, so why am I doing it?" After that, he resigned from the Air Force ROTC program and switched to being an English Education major, graduating in 2009. He worked for three years as an English specialist at GOAL Academy, an online charter school in Colorado. He then moved to Austin to be closer to his brother and nieces, and worked for two years at John P. Ojeda Middle School in Del Valle ISD, and then for four years at W. Charles Akins High School in Austin ISD. In 2019, he graduated with a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from Texas State University, and was hired to be an assistant principal at LC Anderson High School in the summer of 2019. In his spare time, he enjoys playing trombone with Minor Mishap Marching Band, helping organize the Honk!TX music festival, exploring Austin with his fiancée Ali, and playing computer games.