Lisa DeCarlo Apollonio spent most of her childhood in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area. She graduated from high school in Fairfax County, VA. She received her BA in English from Providence College in Providence, RI and her teaching certificate from Towson University in Towson, MD. Mrs. Apollonio received her M.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction from McDaniel College in Frederick, MD. She taught middle school language arts for eight years in Anne Arundel County, MD and wrote curriculum for seventh-grade language arts.
When she married, Mrs. Apollonio moved overseas and worked as an Area Coordinator for a community college on a Naval Station. Since moving to Kentucky, Mrs. Apollonio has earned her gifted and talented endorsement from Northern Kentucky University.
Mrs. Apollonio also teaches classes for ExploreMore! and Duke TIP; Covington Latin School hosts both programs. She is also the moderator for the school yearbook.
Mrs. Apollonio and her husband have two children. They are active parishioners at Immaculate Heart of Mary in Burlington, Kentucky. In her spare time, Mrs. Apollonio enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family.
Carpe Diem ~ Horace
Find the good, and praise it. ~ Alex Haley
Everyone deserves the chance to fly! ~ Elphaba in Wicked, Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz
Travis Arnold grew up on a farm in Palmyra, Indiana, a small town just west of Louisville. He attended DePauw University, in Greencastle, Indiana, earning his BA in History in 2005. From there he taught in and around Kentucky for 11 years, mostly in middle schools, before becoming a school administrator in 2018. He worked as an assistant principal for 4 years before leaving administration to run his own vacation rental business, which he still operates. Along the way, he also earned his Master's in Education and Education Specialist degrees at Bellarmine University.
Amy Darpel is a lifelong Northern Kentuckian. She graduated from Villa Madonna Academy and then pursued degrees at Thomas More College. She has spent her entire teaching career advocating for gifted students and working with students who struggle with Executive Functioning Disorder. Amy has had various roles at Covington Latin School including admissions, marketing, Executive Director of ExploreMore!, and Director of Advancement. She also serves as Dean of Studies and runs the Academic Success Program.
Mrs. Darpel is married to her high school sweetheart and has three children and one grandchild. Her son, Jake, attended CLS and graduated in 2016.
Everybody is a genius, but if your judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it is stupid.
- Einstein
Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love. - Mother Teresa
Samantha Darpel grew up in Northern Kentucky and attended Notre Dame Academy and Thomas More University where she majored in Communications, English, and Theater. She received her Masters of Arts in Teaching from the University of the Cumberlands. Samantha has served as CLS's Theater Director for many years using her vast experience from her productions in high school and college. In addition to theater, Samantha teaches English, Speech, and Study Skills. She has served as the Director of ExploreMore! and Camp Invention summer programs.
Ms. Darpel is married and expecting her first child in the coming year.
Magister Ryan Divine grew up in Sugarland, Texas, and Northern Kentucky, where he graduated from Covington Latin School in 2016. While at Latin School, he was involved in the National Junior Classical League (NJCL) all four years as well as the Basketball, Cross Country, and Golf teams. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Cincinnati with a B.S. in Biological Sciences and Minors in Mathematics and Chemistry. He is currently completing his Masters in Business Administration with the University of Cincinnati.
Ryan heavily indebts himself to the Classics and has been a private tutor of all levels of Latin for 4 years. One of his favorite experiences is traveling to Greece to see first hand the literature, archeology, and mythology seen in the classroom. While in college he has attended 5 NJCL conventions as a Senior Classical League member and served as the 2018-2019 NSCL Historian and 2019-2021 National Website Committee member.
Magister Divine will be teaching Latin II and III students as well as sponsoring the school’s JCL chapter. He is beyond excited to return as part of the Latin School community and share the same passion that he has received as a classicist.
Audaces fortuna iuvat – Vergil
Jo Guido grew up in Northern Kentucky, attending St. Vincent and St. Catherine elementary schools. She is the oldest of seven children and a Northern Kentucky University graduate. Her undergraduate degree is in mathematics, and she has earned a Master of Arts as Teacher of Mathematics from the University of Cincinnati. After graduating from NKU, she began teaching math in Cincinnati Public Schools, where she spent 33 years, retiring in 2018. The recipient of many teaching awards, Ms. Guido was most recently selected as the winner of the Hawkin’s Award – a yearly award given to one outstanding CPS teacher.
Ms. Guido spent the first half of her career teaching 7th and 8th-grade math at Shroder Paideia, a school based on classical methods of education, incorporating seminars, academic coaching, and didactic instruction. The remaining years were spent teaching 11th and 12th grade at Clark Montessori (the first public Montessori High School east of the Mississippi). As an 11th and 12th grade teacher, she has taught Algebra 2, Pre-Calculus, AP Calculus, AP Statistics, and dual enrollment Calculus and Statistics.
Ms. Guido was enjoying her retirement, hiking, creating artfully stitched decorative balls called Temari, tutoring, traveling the country teaching teachers, and visiting with her grandchildren when a friend suggested she might be a good fit for a math position at Covington Latin. When Ms. Guido was in elementary school, girls weren’t yet admitted to Covington Latin, and she is excited to finally have an opportunity to be a part of the Covington Latin family.
Mr. Evan Harmeling has lived in Northern Kentucky his entire life. He graduated from Covington Catholic High School and went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Thomas More University. He is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Education. Mr. Harmeling worked in a veterinary clinic for four years before becoming the biology teacher at Covington Latin. He discovered his love of teaching while working as a T.A. for several biology labs during his undergraduate career. He is excited to be teaching in the Diocese of Covington.
Mr. Harmeling enjoys spending his free time experiencing the natural world. He is an avid hunter, fisherman, and all-around outdoorsman. He hopes to one day visit all of our nation’s national parks. His other interests include spending time with his family and playing musical instruments.
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God remains forever.” –Isaiah 40:8
Since Ms. Haynes could walk and climb onto her Dad’s desk, she was stealing highlighters and ink pens, drawing rudimentary figures onto his paperwork and documents. Since then, art has been her passion. She draws almost every day to express herself.
Ms. Haynes attended Dixie Heights High School in Edgewood, Kentucky (2017). She was a finalist in the Overture Awards for Visual Art in her senior year. She is a two-sport letterman in Track and Cross Country. After high school, Madyson earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Thomas More University (2021). Her artwork has been published in various books, “Words” “SOS Art Food and Justice,” and ``ABC Book for Waste and Recycling.” Her art medium specialty is Ceramics, Illustration, Printmaking, and Watercolor.
She was an Outreach Art Instructor for Baker Hunt in Covington, KY. She went to Sixth District Elementary School, Newport Intermediate School, and John G. Carlisle in the Outreach program. She is still an instructor for numerous youth classes at Baker Hunt.
When she is not working, Ms. Haynes stays busy spending time with family, staying active at the gym, making numerous art pieces, and enjoying being outdoors.
John Patrick Kennedy is one of seven children who attended Catholic schools in North Carolina, Maryland, and Connecticut. After graduating from Bishop McGuinness High School in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, John moved to the great state of Ohio to attend the University of Dayton where he majored in English, minored in psychology and history and played on the varsity soccer team for all four years as a goalkeeper. Earning a graduate assistantship at U.D., he taught college composition and finished his Master’s beginning of his teaching career.
John began teaching at Chicago’s Gordon Tech High School, an all-boys Catholic high school west of Wrigley Field. Teaching English, speech, history, journalism, and P.E. and coaching soccer, basketball, and tennis, John enjoyed experiencing all the neighborhoods--good and not so good--in competitions against other Chicago Catholic League opponents.
John and his wife, Christin, made real their love of travel teaching in American international schools in El Salvador and Alexandria, Egypt for the next six years. John also coached the first female soccer team at the Escuela Americana and took his boys’ basketball team at the Schutz American School to Beirut, Lebanon for a tournament. After earning his doctorate at the University of Minnesota in Educational Leadership, John and Christin began a new chapter as parents and as an administrator, first at Central Catholic and then 10 years as principal at St. Anthony Catholic School in San Antonio, Texas. John then served 9 years as Head of School at Lakeview Academy in Gainesville, Georgia before coming to Covington Latin School.
John and Christin have two sons who attend DePaul University in Chicago.
“We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.This enables us to do something, and to do it very well. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.”
Oscar Romero
After graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education and English, Mr. Krebs developed teaching experience at two other schools prior to joining the Latin School faculty in 1991. Teaching English, Drama, and Speech, Mr. Krebs also served as faculty advisor to Student Council, the Shakespeare Club, and coached the golf team for eight years. He has had the privilege to co-lead the Covington Latin Expeditionary Force to Europe on four occasions: in 1992, 1995, 1999, and 2004. During those years he also served on the Faculty Advisory Committee, as an elected faculty liaison to the Headmaster.
A year after earning his Master's Degree in Education, in the fall of 1999, he joined Dr. Bowman's team at the Diocesan Education Office, serving as Secondary Consultant, the ACUE Schools Consultant, and the office manager for the Kentucky Non-Public Schools Commission. Those two years in the education office took him around the diocese and the state, meeting people who are passionate about private and faith-based education.
Matt returned to Latin School in the fall of 2001, serving as Campus Minister for the next eleven years. He is honored to serve the Latin School community as Dean of Students, a position he finds rewarding and enlightening. In his parish, he serves as an Extraordinary Eucharistic Minister.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. – Matthew 5:9
Ms. Light is very excited to be returning to her alma mater as a history teacher! Inspired by the great teachers who taught her, Ms. Light earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Thomas More University in 2019, with minors in English and Philosophy. She worked in the fine art and antique auction business for almost four years. There she had hands-on experience with some of the most valuable and unique privately held artworks and artifacts in the world. While working, she earned her Master of Arts in Public History from Northern Kentucky University in 2022.
Ms. Light has a dachshund named Lady Sybil, “Sybbie” for short. She enjoys live music, classic literature, and traveling. She is a parishioner at the Cathedral and is deeply impacted by her Catholic faith.
"The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it." - Flannery O'Connor
"Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy. That is not our business and, in fact, it is nobody's business. What we are asked to do is to love, and this love itself will render both ourselves and our neighbors worthy..." - Thomas Merton
"To remain ignorant of history is to remain forever a child." - Cicero
Mrs. Little grew up in a large musical Irish-Catholic Family in Cincinnati, Ohio. She has 5 brothers and sisters, and 16 nieces and nephews and counting. Mrs. Little graduated from Mother of Mercy High School, where she was the 2009 Regional Winner of the English Speaking Union’s Cincinnati Shakespeare Competition.
Mrs. Little has a Bachelor Degree in Vocal Performance from Northern Kentucky University. During her time there, she was a member of the Chamber Choir and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, with whom she competed in an International Choral Competition in Varna, Bulgaria. She studied abroad for a summer in Salzburg, Austria with the Kentucky Institute for International Studies (KIIS). While there Mrs. Little studied Opera, Music Theory, and Music History.
After graduation, She performed with Cincinnati Chamber Opera, Queen City Chamber Opera, Cantigium Vocal Ensemble, and St. Peter in Chains Cathedral in Cincinnati. Mrs. Little currently sings at Old St. Mary’s in Over-The-Rhine, and lives in Sunman, Indiana, with her husband Mike, and daughter Ivy. They have a vegetable garden.
Alexandra McIntosh is a writer and teacher living in Kentucky, her favorite place in the world. Her debut collection of poetry, Bowlfuls of Blue, was published by Assure Press in 2021. Her background is varied—she received her B.A. in Adventure Leadership from Asbury University in a program that used outdoor activities (backpacking, rock-climbing, and canoeing) as the basis for theoretical discussions about nontraditional education; her M.A. is in English from Northern Kentucky University, where her thesis focused on women writing about nature; and she earned an MFA in Poetry from Miami University. Some of Alexandra's favorite writers include Wendell Berry, Jorrie Graham, Christian Wiman, Elena Ferrante, and Thomas Merton; she especially likes books contemplating the natural world and our place in it. Alexandra serves on the Board of the Fort Thomas Forest Conservancy, planning and hosting events at the Harlan Hubbard Studio and Nature Preserve and overseeing the Hubbard Artist-in-Residence program in conjunction with the Behringer-Crawford Museum. She is the Managing Editor of Moon Cola Zine.
Originally from Northern California, Ashley Pinnell attended Santa Clara University and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication with a minor in sociology. She graduated Magna Cum Laude and went on to receive her Master of Arts in Teaching from Santa Clara University with a credential in secondary social studies education. After several years in the classroom, she moved to New York City and began her work in high school admissions. Through her five years of experience working as an independent high school enrollment director, Ashley developed an institutional perspective while taking the time to deeply understand and care for each student and family. Before transitioning to college advising, Ashley worked in public, charter, and independent high school settings and served as an academic and resident advisor at summer programs on Harvard, Georgetown, and UC Berkeley campuses. Ashley is a member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association and completed her Certificate in College Counseling from UCLA. She lives in Cincinnati, OH, with her husband and two corgis, Stanley and Lucy.
Fr. Schaeper is from Cincinnati and went to Saint Xavier High School. He became interested in chemistry there and went to Xavier University for a B.S. in Chemistry. Next, he worked at Procter and Gamble as a chemical technician for two years and then went to Miami University for an M.S. in analytical chemistry. Fr. Schaeper went on for a doctorate in analytical chemistry at the University of Tennessee and then did a postdoctoral fellowship in analytical chemistry at Furman University in South Carolina. A job search led him to Thomas More College as a visiting assistant professor in chemistry for two years, where he taught lecture and lab classes for general and analytical chemistry. After that position ended, he was hired at Wood Hudson Cancer Research Lab as a senior staff scientist to work on the early detection of inherited DNA mutations in patients with various ovarian or colon cancer stages because these cancers are usually caught late due to non-specific symptoms. He wrote grants and presented research at national conferences and trained college students on how to do research, and assisted them with their thesis projects.
In 2010, he felt called to the priesthood due to having an extreme feeling of peace in the recovery room after having a five-hour surgery to remove a tumor from his spinal cord. He had many people ask if he had thought about the priesthood, which was a confirmation, and in the fall and spring, he had a voice or thought come to him saying you are one of my priests. He entered the seminary in 2010 at St. Vincent Seminary in Pennsylvania and was ordained for the Diocese of Covington in 2016. He was the parochial vicar at Blessed Sacrament for two years and later was the parochial vicar for IHM for four years. Recently, he was transferred to Mary Queen of Heaven Parish, where he is in residence and will be helping out on weekends. He is excited about teaching four theology classes and two chemistry classes at CLS. He enjoys teaching, reading, sports, walking, visiting aquariums, and having coffee.
“Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
Mr. Smorey grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While in Jr. High, his father took a job with Procter & Gamble, and the family picked up and moved to Cincinnati. After graduating from Fairfield High School, Mr. Smorey attended Fairmont State University in West Virginia and earned a Bachelor of Engineering Technology. He also played collegiate baseball.
Mr. Smorey worked in the architectural/construction field in Southern California and then landed back in Cincinnati, where he worked for 31 years for the Hamilton County Building Department as a plans examiner for the Storm Water Division. During this time, Mr. Smorey felt God’s call to attend Mount St. Mary’s Seminary; School of Theology in Cincinnati, and graduated with a Master of Arts in Religion, specializing in Youth and Young Adult ministry. After graduation, he became the Youth Minister at Guardian Angels Parish in Cincinnati. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Smorey worked as a volunteer for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati as the Faith and Spirt Chairperson for the Charter on Catholic Youth Athletics (CCYA) and was the Spiritual Liaison/Executive Member of the Greater Cincinnati Catholic Youth Sports League (GCCYS).
In 2017 Mr. Smorey and his family moved to Alexandria, KY. He and his wife have been blessed with two sons. He is very active in his parish, St. Mary of the Assumption, in Alexandria. Mr. Smorey is also the boys head basketball coach at Covington Latin and enjoys sports, board gaming, doing projects around the house, and spending time with the family and their dog, Crosby.
“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4
Sr. Anita Marie is a native of Cincinnati. She has a twin sister who is also a Sister of Notre Dame. Sr Anita has taught at Notre Dame Academy, Bishop Brossart High School, and Notre Dame Academy in Uganda, Africa. She helped start the high school in Africa where she taught for seventeen years. She returned in December of 2018 and taught a dual credit Calculus class after returning.
She has taught mathematics, computer, and physics during her career. She enjoys being a part of the faculty of Covington Latin and finds them to be so professional, caring, and hard-working. If you see her and she doesn’t seem to recognize you, you may be talking to her twin sister Sister. They have lots of interesting stories to tell.
Sister is a born educator and loves being in the classroom (or online!?) She was inspired by the following quote as a high student: “Give a person a fish. He lives for a day. Teach a person to fish. He lives for a lifetime.”
“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people together to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”
(Antoine de Saint-Exupér)
James Stebbins was born in Salt Lake City, UT. He spent his childhood in many places, including Houston, TX, and New York City, before moving to Northern Kentucky. He graduated from Covington Latin School in 2016. At Covington Latin School, he was involved in JCL and played golf. James then attended Xavier University, graduating from the CPHAB program, with minors in Biology and Philosophy, in 2020. The Classics and Philosophy Honors Bachelor of the Arts program has given James profound respect for the civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome. James completed his Masters in the Arts of Teaching at Thomas More University.
James has been in love with the Classics since entering Covington Latin School. He has tutored Latin at all levels for seven years, and Greek for three years. He also studied ancient medical ethics and doctor-patient relationships for his CPHAB thesis and earned the Zahurancik award for distinction in the CPHAB program upon graduation. James will be teaching AP Latin and Ancient Greek, and cannot wait to share his enthusiasm for the ancient world with his students.
Non scholae sed vitae discimus. -Latin Proverb
Mr. Syfert grew up in Cincinnati. He received a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois where he also played on the university’s soccer and ultimate Frisbee teams. After starting his career in the petroleum industry, he returned to Cincinnati to work for Procter & Gamble as a product development engineer in Research and Development.
He has developed numerous novel consumer products and innovative, efficient, processes to make them in the laboratory and also at the manufacturing plant scale, with a recent specialization in personal cleansing products such as soaps and body washes (e.g., Olay Ribbons and Olay Moisturizing Bodywash). He has started up new products at manufacturing plants in the United States and internationally to bring products to market. He will be glad to tell you why Olay body wash is the best in the world.
Following a passion to teach, Mr. Syfert was licensed in the Graduate Licensure program at Xavier University and has a Professional Teaching Certificate from the State of Kentucky. His teaching experience includes student teaching Chemistry at Summit Country Day, teaching multiple years of science to home-school coop students and frequently demonstrating soap-making at various schools. He joined the Covington Latin faculty in 2015 to teach earth science, physical science and honors physics. His industry background, where he applied STEM principles every day, makes it possible to relate classroom science to real-world applications with relevant examples and hands-on learning.
Mr. Syfert and his wife are blessed with 5 children. He is very active in his faith and in his parish. He also coaches soccer and enjoys cycling, hiking, camping, reading, and woodworking.