Your Business Is Ours, Too. Arbor Creek North

Since 1985, we’ve called Austin home, and the people and businesses that have grown up around us family. Whether it’s tax advice or business planning, we take a personal, tailored approach to helping your turn your dream and vision into results. Let’s get to work.

Jim Clark, CPA

Director

Jim is a native Austinite having graduated from The University of Texas at Austin in 1997 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the McCombs School of Business and was privileged to represent the university as a member of the football team. He has been licensed by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy as a Certified Public Accountant since 2007. Jim started his career in public accounting in 1999 navigating international individual taxation in Houston. When the opportunity arose to move back to Austin, he joined his father’s tax practice and eventually took it over. After years of working as a sole proprietor, he decided to join a small local firm and found Arbor Creek Tax. Jim enjoys working with clients and coaching them in all aspects of tax and life. He spends most of his free time with his wife, Amy, while watching the activities of their four children.

Jose M. Vela

Tax Manager

Jose is a graduate of the University of Texas at Brownsville with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting. He is licensed by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy as a Certified Public Accountant. Jose has been practicing public accounting since 1998 working on business and individual clients. He is a current member of the Austin Chapter of the TSCPA. Jose was born and raised in Brownsville and is a United States Navy Veteran. He is fluent in English and Spanish. He particularly enjoys empowering clients with QuickBooks knowledge.

Thomas Cepek

Senior Tax Accountant

Tom is a graduate of Robert Morris University in Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. He is licensed by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy as a Certified Public Accountant and is also a Certified Pro Advisor in QuickBooks. Tom has 13 years of experience in public accounting in Pennsylvania and over 5 years of public accounting experience in Texas. He is a current member of the Austin Chapter of TSCPA. Tom was born and raised in Pennsylvania. He moved to Texas in 2014 to take advantage of our seasonal temperatures. He enjoys preparing and reviewing tax returns for a wide range of individuals, corporations and partnerships.

Leslie Acosta Bhattacharya

Tax Advisor

Leslie began her career in public accounting at a small CPA firm in Houston. Two years later, she married, moved to San Francisco, and began her family. She spent 4 years working at KMPG and then working with a local estate planning attorney. Recently, Leslie moved back to Texas with a renewed interest in public accounting. She enjoys working with individuals and their trust and estate compliance work. Leslie earned her LLM in Taxation from Golden Gate University School of Law, her JD from South Texas College of Law, her MBA in Accounting and BBA in Finance from the University of Houston.

Robyn Blackwell

Tax Advisor

Robyn is a graduate of Schreiner University with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting. She began her career in public accounting at Price Waterhouse Coopers and transitioned into tax at Arbor Creek in 2019. Robyn is a Texas Hill Country native and moved to Austin to enjoy the outdoors, running, yoga, and spending time with friends and family.

Virginia Craig

Tax Accountant

Virginia has been with the firm since 2012 as a seasonal tax accountant behind the scenes. She graduated summa cum laude from Park University with a BS degree in Healthcare Administration and a second major in accounting. Previously, Virginia owned and operated a bookkeeping and tax office in a small town in Far West Texas. She conducted several Town Hall meetings and was a guest editorialist in the local paper to help people understand their taxes in the new world of electronic filing, how their refunds would be received, and explain how the IRS would communicate with them directly if there was a problem with their taxes or refund. When Virginia is not working on taxes, she is a wife and mother to two amazing grown daughters. She loves to travel, doing crafts, is a voracious reader keeping up to date on current issues, reading fiction and non-fiction books and attending all types of concerts, musical performances, museums and enjoying all that Austin and Central Texas has to offer.

Sharon Babin

Office Manager

Sharon is a longtime Texas resident originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana where she graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree in General Business. She has been in the Office Administration/Customer Service industry for over 20 years. Sharon’s optimism and passion for people help her strive to provide superior customer service to our clients. She enjoys greeting clients and guiding them in getting answers to their tax related questions.