Our Staff and Board of Directors

Dave Irvine

Executive Director

Dave Irvine became the Executive Director of the Highlands Center for Natural History in January of 2008. Mr. Irvine brings in over 25 years of experience working with non–profit, science education organizations as a naturalist, program director and executive director. Most recently he was the Director at the Cuyahoga Valley Environmental Education Center in Northeast Ohio, which was operated in partnership with the National Park Service. He was also a past President of Environmental Education Council of Ohio and has worked for other organizations in Colorado, North Dakota and Ohio. Originally from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, Mr. Irvine holds a BS degree from Penn State University in Parks & Recreation with an emphasis in Environmental Interpretation and has done graduate work at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Andrew Sweeney

Operations Director

In 2010, Andrew moved to Arizona into a Program Director position for a residential and day camp located in the Prescott National Forest.  Growing up in the beautiful State of Maine, Andrew had access to the Appalachian Mountains where he spent much of his time backpacking, running and skiing.  His affinity for the outdoors still remains, and can still be found hiking and camping in the pines, and riding his bike around town.  Prior to his move to Arizona, Andrew received his Bachelor of the Arts from the University of Maine in History, Sociology, and Anthropology.  He continued his post-graduate work at University of Bridgeport and receive his teaching certificate while working in secondary education in Connecticut.

Erin Nixon

Education Coordinator

Erin was born and raised in southern California and earned her Bachelors of Science in Zoology at Washington State University. Prescott has been her home since 2017 and started her career in outdoor education as an education facilitator and program coordinator at Chapel Rock’s Aspen Creek Outdoor School. She has also been a docent at Heritage Park Zoological Sanctuary since moving here. She spent summers programming for YMCA summer camp and the Discovery Center at the Anchorage Museum in Anchorage, Alaska. In all of her work she has been fostering a passion for science and the outdoors. Outside of work she loves to hike, rock climb, and spend time with animals, especially her own or the ones at Heritage Park Zoological Sanctuary.

Sonya Wood Mahler 

Membership Database and Volunteer Coordinator

Sonya has been teaching youth and adults about environmental education and outdoor exploration for 35 years. After careful study of the Winnie the Pooh children’s stories, Sonya’s family decidedly claims that she is half Owl and half Tigger. She is driven to teach those around her but she loves to encourage them to play too.

Sonya grew up on the Alabama Gulf coast. She has degrees from Auburn University and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. For the first 20 years, she was a marine biologist and marine cooperative extension agent. She has worked as program director for environmental education centers, nature center naturalist, planetarium interpreter, aquatic education specialist, and watershed educator. Sonya has led 65 kayak trips and 53 manatee dive trips. She also leads hikes, caving trips, stargazing, and storytelling.

Sonya and her husband Larry participate in work mission trips in Mexico, where they build schools, libraries, health clinics, and drinking water systems. Some of Sonya’s favorite things are travel, photography, theater, bike riding, SCUBA diving, gardening, hiking with her dog Prancer, shrimp, fresh raspberries, and ice box pecan pie.

Tom Agostino

Marketing Coordinator

Tom has an unusual, and colorful, history in the Marketing and Communication field. During his seventeen years living in Los Angeles and working in the entertainment industry he co-produced the “The Imperial Bells of China”, the largest group of Chinese artists that ever toured the US, twice. He also worked closely with Tai, the amazing Indian elephant that starred in the movie, “Water for Elephants,” when he founded The LA Circus, an award-winning one-ring community circus sponsored by the City of Los Angeles. Tom also worked on several of the largest Music Festivals of the 90s, including the Amnesty Int’l World Tour w/ Peter Gabriel, Sting and Bruce Springsteen, Fiesta Broadway, and the US Festival. As Tom says, “After running a circus for two years, there’s not much that can surprise me. If you can deal with a dozen clowns on a daily basis, everything else is a piece of cake.” Thirteen years ago, when Tom moved to Prescott, he started the Folk Sessions Radio Show, still broadcasting on the KJAZZ Radio Network. He received a Bucky Award for Media in 2013, performs at church halls and folk fests with his wife, Christa, and is proud to be a “Man Who Cooks”.