Nicholas Scoccimaro attended St. Teresa’s from kindergarten to 8th grade! His favorite memories from STS include the first day of school every year and seeing all his friends again daily, playing dodgeball and kickball in PE class, and the feeling of anticipation the morning of every field day.
During his attendance at STS, smaller class sizes and the tight knit community feel contributed to the type of person he is today. He is someone that never meets a stranger, has a large social network, and can sustain meaningful relationships with those around him. He attributes all of that to his overall STS experience of dynamic teachers, students, and staff.
Nicholas graduated from UGA in 2018 with a Bachelor’s in Economics and then graduated with a Master’s in Business Analytics in 2019. He is currently a software analyst in Atlanta for a freight brokerage and loves it! His job his highly technical and gives him a great sense of purpose. He feels that his STS education laid the foundation for him to chart his own path with certainty.
Congratulations Nicholas, STS is proud of you!
Catie Duskin graduated from STS in 8th grade in 2003! Some of her fondest memories from St. Teresa’s include the St. Patrick’s Day parade with green donuts, the kindergarten Halloween parade, the Holly Berry Bazar, and best of all the catch-up conversations with her classmates in the mornings during drop off in the courtyard!
Catie graduated from Mercer with a BS in Biology, followed by her MBA in Healthcare Administration from South University. She graduated from the inaugural class of the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine in Dothan, AL. Last year she finished her residency in Moultrie, GA in family medicine, and now she is currently in practice at Sterling Primary Care in Moultrie and loving it! She has close family and friends that reside in Dawson and Albany and she has had the pleasure of serving them through her care as a physician.
Congratulations Catie! STS is proud of you!
Hope (Johnson) Parks attended St. Teresa’s School for 10 years and graduated in 2010 from 8th grade (before STS added their current high school program). Some of her favorite memories from STS include the St. Patrick’s Day parade, tug of war on field day with the smell of grilled burgers and hotdogs in the air and cheering for the boys’ basketball team after she would finish playing for the girls’ team.
One of the things she appreciated most about STS was the smaller class sizes. She graduated from STS with about 10 classmates and went on to join a high school class of around 400. She made many lifelong friends at St. Teresa’s and keeps up with some of her old classmates to this day.
After high school, she attended college for nursing and graduated with honors in 2017 with her associate degree! She passed the NCLEX (nursing boards) on the first try and accepted a job in the operating room at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital. She continued her education and obtained her BSN in 2018, a month before getting married, and is currently a Pre-Op Nurse at Phoebe.
Hope feels that St. Teresa’s was an instrumental part of her upbringing and helped shape the person she is today. She is still in contact with some of the teachers who helped educate her and are now dear friends to her. She enjoyed having her mom, Mrs. Johnson, teach while she attended and having her by her side through her journey at STS. She is thankful for the time she spent at St. Teresa’s, the experiences she had, and the people she met – all which she holds dear to her heart!
Congratulations Hope! STS is proud of you!
Lori (Mohl) Leach attended St. Teresa’s from kindergarten, in Mrs. Yielding and Mrs. Martin’s class, in 1977 to eighth grade in 1986! Her favorite memories from STS include Mrs. Rakel, her 2nd grade teacher during sacrament preparation, SRA reading lab in Mrs. Will’s 3rd grade class, altar serving, which was prompted by her 6th grade teacher Sr. Elizabeth Anne, and making several lifelong friends that she remains close with to this day! She loves that St. Teresa’s gave her the basic formation and love for her Catholic faith. She appreciates that while she was attending STS, she was encouraged to keep learning more about her faith and making it a part of her daily life.
One of her favorite things to do when teaching RCIA is tell those planning to come into the church how they are joining her family. She was baptized at St. Teresa’s Church, attended St. Teresa’s School from kindergarten-8th grade, received all her sacraments at St. Teresa’s, and so have all her children and grandchildren. St. Teresa’s School and Church are her family!
Lori is currently serving as the Director of Religious Education for St. Teresa’s Catholic Church and is a proud mom and grandmother!
Congratulations Lori! STS is proud of you!
KE’Marvin attended St. Teresa’s from 1999-2008! Two of his fondest memories from STS include: graduating in 8th grade and appreciating all the years spent at St. Teresa’s, and scoring the game winning shot while playing basketball against SCA, a rival local team, with a packed gym and many excited teammates pumped with excitement!
While attending STS, he learned that education was important and a gift and should be used to glorify God and further His kingdom. His teachers encouraged him to challenge himself academically in all subjects, which helped prepare him for high school and college. Being able to receive a quality education at St. Teresa’s showed him the lengths he could reach both intellectually and overall, as a person.
He went on to receive his Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Troy University in 2017 and his Master of Science in Social Work from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 2020. While at the Univ. of Tennessee, he served as a college of social work ambassador, and played receiver for Troy University from 2014-2017 playing both receiver and running back. He then went on to earn a full scholarship at Troy as well for his final season. During graduate school, KE’Marvin pioneered a mental health program for athletes at Maryville College where he completed his practicum. The program provided counseling, therapy, and outreach services for student-athletes. He also served as a missionary in South Africa and has a great heart for learning different cultures. Cultural humility is a key value for him, as well as supporting student-athletes of all backgrounds holistically. His vision is to see all people and athletes thrive in their overall well-being. His professional and research interests include providing mental health and sport performance services for student-athletes, individual and group therapy, interpersonal therapy, mindfulness use among athletes, spirituality and mental health, grief counseling, depression, anxiety, diversity, chronic stress among athletes from single vs. two-parent homes (family dynamics), generational chronic stress in minority student-athletes, and effects of social isolation in the college setting.
KE’Marvin, MSSW, is currently a sport social work clinician starting a new chapter at the University of Southern California as a full-time therapist in athletics with Counseling Mental Health Services for the Sport Psychology Department. His job duties will entail providing mental health therapy and sport performance services for student-athletes at USC within their athletics department. Along with providing therapy, KE’Marvin will also provide outreach/trainings and psycho education to student-athletes and athletics staff to educate and inform them about mental health, as well as mental health resources, coping strategies, and more.
A native of Albany, Georgia, KE’Marvin is faith-driven, loves sports of all kinds, enjoys being outdoors, playing golf in his free time, and exercising. He cherishes time with his family and friends and has always had a passion for serving individuals with special needs.
Congratulations KE’Marvin! STS is proud of you!
Katie (Para) Esco attended St. Teresa’s from 1998-2007! Her favorite memories from STS include: the teachers – which made her look forward to coming to school everyday, when she got to read during school mass, every field day – especially when Mrs. Hatcher played softball, being “principal for the day” in 4th grade, dressing up as St. Teresa of Avila in 1st grade for All Saints’ Day, riding in a limo for a magazine drive prize for Mrs. Johnson’s whole 5th grade class, and many more!
Katie is now a middle school interventionist at a Catholic school in Knoxville. She is very grateful for her Catholic education since she is working at a Catholic school. She says, “STS built the strongest foundation for my faith and has prepared me for any adversity ahead.” She continues, “I hope to have the same impact on my students that my STS teachers had on me.”
Her favorite quote is, “Spread the love everywhere you go, Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.” – Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Congratulations Katie! STS is proud of you!
