Bill Mark
High School Guide, Aim Academy — Draper, Utah
Bill Mark believes that the purpose of education extends far beyond preparing students for college or a career. At its best, education helps young people discover who they are, develop confidence through meaningful work, and become people who create value, build strong relationships, and leave every community better than they found it.
That conviction has guided Bill throughout a diverse career spanning youth work, entrepreneurship, law, business leadership, and alternative education. After more than twenty-five years practicing law and building businesses, he is excited to return to the work that first inspired him.
My Journey
Long before becoming an attorney, I discovered a passion for working with teenagers. Before law school, I worked in the Granite School District, helping design and implement the Count Me In program for students facing significant personal and educational challenges. Those experiences left a lasting impression on me and planted a conviction that has shaped every chapter of my life since: young people are capable of far more than adults ever imagine when they are trusted, challenged, and supported.
Over the next twenty-five years, my professional life took me into law, entrepreneurship, and business leadership. I worked inside state and federal courts before litigating there, built companies, led teams, and worked with entrepreneurs and organizations navigating complex challenges. While those experiences may seem far removed from education, they continually reinforced what I had first learned while working with teenagers: success depends less on what people know than on who they are becoming.
Throughout those years, my interest in education never faded. I studied and served in a variety of educational settings, including Waldorf education, the Sudbury model, and Big Picture Learning’s Leaving to Learn program. In 2015, I traveled to Austin, Texas, where I received Guide training directly from Jeff and Laura Sandefer. After returning to Utah, I co-founded a nonprofit that introduced entrepreneurship, project-based learning, and real-world problem solving to high school students.
When the opportunity arose to join Lance Stewart and the Aim Academy community in 2026, it felt less like a career change and more like coming home.
My Approach as a Guide
As an Aim Guide my role is not to provide every answer, but to ask thoughtful questions, create meaningful challenges, and encourage students to take ownership of their learning. I believe confidence grows from doing difficult things, reflecting on both successes and failures, and discovering that you are capable of more than you once believed.
My hope is that students leave Aim with much more than academic knowledge. I hope they leave with greater confidence, stronger character, deeper curiosity, meaningful friendships, and the belief that they can make a positive difference wherever life takes them.
Beyond Aim
My wife, Heidi, and I have five children and two grandchildren, and much of our family life revolves around outdoor adventures together — mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding, backpacking, and exploring wild places.
I also enjoy cooking, nutrition, lifelong learning, and movement. I’m a certified MovNat instructor and a trained chef, and I continue to be fascinated by the process of learning new skills and helping others do the same.
Come see the studio Bill guides
The best way to understand Aim Academy is to visit it. Meet the rest of the team here.
