Stephen Balliet

Born and raised in Arizona, Dr. Balliet is a proud product of the local public school system. After graduating high school, he attended the University of Arizona, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education with a major in English and a minor in chemistry in 2007. That same year, he began his professional career as a high school English teacher at Cactus High School. During his tenure at Cactus, Dr. Balliet taught various levels of English and developed cross-curricular objectives for freshmen and sophomore curricula to enhance students' disciplinary literacy. He also contributed to a successful school-wide grant program aimed at improving English Language Arts scores for the bottom 20% of students.

While teaching at Cactus High School, Dr. Balliet pursued a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership at Arizona State University, which he completed in 2010 with the goal of becoming a school administrator.

In 2013, Dr. Balliet became an assistant principal at Oasis Elementary School. During his three years there, he supported the implementation of Professional Learning Communities and a strategic approach to Response to Intervention, efforts that helped Oasis achieve an "A" rating from the Arizona Department of Education. In 2016, he joined Foothills Fine Arts Academy, collaborating with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to integrate art methods into the general curriculum.

In 2017, Dr. Balliet was appointed principal of Sun Valley Elementary School, a Title I school. Under his leadership, the school received Results Based Funding for three consecutive years and raised its state grade to a "B," reflecting significant student growth.

In 2020, Dr. Balliet became the principal of Kachina Elementary School, another Title I school, where he oversaw both general education and a specialized Autistic program. The school maintained its streak of receiving Results Based Funding for three years and also improved its state grade to a "B." That same year, he completed his Doctoral Degree in Organizational Leadership at Grand Canyon University, culminating in his dissertation titled "Elementary-School Teachers’ Perceptions of Their Preparedness in Implementing Blended Learning."

In 2021, Dr. Balliet began teaching part-time at Grand Canyon University and Western Governors' University, developing a passion for higher education and preparing future educators to impact student learning significantly. In 2023, he joined the faculty at Arizona State University full-time, eager to share his knowledge and support future educators in improving K-12 education nationwide.