Advisory Board

Since 1986, Kate Taylor has been the Director of Children's Programming at WGBH, where she helped to re-establish the department as one of the nation's top producers of children's programs. Ms. Taylor is currently Executive Producer of the award winning ZOOM. She is also Executive Producer of PEEP and the Big Wide World, a series for pre-schoolers with a science curriculum that is broadcast on the Discovery Kids Channel and The Learning Channel. She has executive produced a number of programs including Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, and the acclaimed series for adolescents, Degrassi Junior High and Degrassi High. Ms. Taylor has served as executive- in-charge of several other WGBH-produced series, including Arthur, WGBH's EMMY award winning animated series for 4-8 year olds. Previous to her current position at WGBH, Ms. Taylor served as Associate Director of Children's and Cultural Programming at PBS, where she oversaw the national children's programming schedule and the development of new children's series. Ms. Taylor holds a Masters Degree in Education and is the mother of three children.

Tracy Hayes founded and continues to lead a corporate services company, CWS Corporate Housing, which boasts annual revenues of 10 million dollars. As President of CWS Corporate Housing, Ms. Hayes has built a dedicated team of employees, leveraged talent and resources, and fostered an environment of success. In 2001, Inc. Magazine recognized her and her company in their annual Inc. 500 National Award. Ms. Hayes is also a member of The Executive Committee, an organization of CEO’s and Presidents, and an advisor to BRIDGE, an enterprise that helps companies create and implement internal volunteer programs. In addition, she is a Partner in Education with the Austin School District and a tutor at McBee Elementary. As a parent of two active children and an entrepreneur she is strongly committed to getting kids excited about learning. Her role with PIE Labs is to advise on key management issues, operations issues, and provide a solid focus on business fundamentals.

Linda Montgomery was formerly the Director of Finance for Valence Technology Inc. where she oversaw all internal financing activities. Prior to joining Valence, Ms. Montgomery was the Vice President of Finance and Administration for Infoglide Software Corporation, a venture-backed company. At Infoglide, she was responsible for planning, implementing and managing finance operations and infrastructure, and guided the company through two rounds of private placement funding. Previously, Ms. Montgomery served as the Vice President for Ergosoft Laboratories, Inc., a software usability firm located in the Austin Technology Incubator. Montgomery holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from the Miami University of Ohio and a MBA from University of Texas at Austin. Ms. Montgomery’s role with PIE Labs is to advise on financial planning and management activities.

In 1999, Dustin founded Headspring Systems and has been managing development and deployment of custom software solutions since then. Dustin has successfully led projects for over 125 clients including custom applications for Dell, Trilogy, Activant, Ecensity, and many others. Dustin's comprehensive technical background combined with his user-centered design principals ensures a strong, scalable end product that is easy to use. Dustin's past experience includes technology consulting and enterprise architecture, programming, business management, finance, and project management. Dustin is actively involved in the community as a board member and volunteers for several non-profit organizations, including the management and development of non-profit web sites that meet Section 508 accessibility guidelines. Dustin is a graduate of University of Texas at Austin and is a dedicated Longhorns fan.

Raised in Houston, TX, Sara Hickman launched her professional career at age 14 at a Houston Oilers party with just her guitar and voice. Sara's impressive catalog of successful albums include such titles as "Equal Scary People", "Shortstop", "Faithful Heart", "Newborn", "Toddler", and "Big Kid". Through her recently self-released children's album Newborn, she has donated over $50,000 to the Hill Country Youth Ranch (which aids abused and neglected children). She is extremely involved in many humanitarian issues and has served on the Board of Directors for the Mothers' Milk Bank/Austin, NARAS (the Grammies) and the advisory Board of Arts for People (Dallas). Sara's musical talent has been honored with several prestigious awards from the Austin Music Awards and the Dallas Observer Awards. Her children's albums have also received numerous accolades, including several Parents' Choice and Dr. Toy's awards. Always finding new creative adventures, Sara started STINGRAY, a design group that produces album covers, posters and other media related products for musicians.

Tara Levy is the Director of Human Resources at Enspire Learning, a company committed to making education exciting, engaging, and memorable through the use of technology. Previously, she served as Executive Director of YouthLaunch, Inc., an organization committed to the principle that children are resources of great value. Prior to attending the University of Texas School of Law (JD '01), Tara worked as the Program Director of Community Investment Corporation. While in law school, Tara participated in the Children's Rights Clinic where she served as a court-appointed attorney ad litem, representing abused and neglected children who had been removed from their homes by Child Protective Services. She also chaired the  Public Interest Law Association's conference “Trustees of Justice”. Tara received her B.A. from UT-Austin with Special Honors in the Plan II Honors Program.

Based in New York City, Gita Patel is a Kid Champion who provides PIE Labs a savvy consumer perspective. Gita is a first generation American of Indian-born parents who grew up in a bicultural environment. She received a BS in Pharmacy, with high honors, from the University of Texas at Austin and has served as a staff pharmacist for the Tenet group and the Texas Children's Hospital. Her background includes development of educational and practical material for groups of pharmacy and medical professionals, including the American Society of Hospital Pharmacists. Multilingual, her language skills include Gujarati and French. Gita is a new mother and a doting aunt to five nephews and multiple honorary nieces and nephews.