Our Staff

St. Mary Academy staff is wonderfully dedicated to their students and the school.
This shows such an impressive commitment of time, talent and treasure!

Rev. John Belmonte, S.J., Ph.D.
Superintendent of Catholic Education
belmonte@dioceseofvenice.org

Fr. Belmonte received his B.A. in history from Marquette University in 1985 and after graduation entered the Society of Jesus in St. Paul, Minnesota, and pronounced vows in 1987. He continued studies in philosophy and humanities at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. In preparation for ordination to the priesthood, he completed theological studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy, with a baccalaureate in Sacred Theology in 1995. Fr. Belmonte was ordained to the priesthood on June 14, 1996, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 1997, he completed a Licentiate of Sacred Theology at Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Fr. Belmonte enrolled in 1999 to an Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Doctoral Program at Loyola University in Chicago, which he completed in 2006. Fr. Belmonte held several positions at Marquette University High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and St. Ignatius Preparatory High School in Chicago, Illinois, before joining the Diocese of Joliet, Illinois in 2010, where he served as School Superintendent.

As superintendent, Fr. Belmonte will be responsible for the Department of Education in the Diocese of Venice in Florida which consists of 15 schools; 4,777 students; the Office of Religious Education which supports the 61 parishes and 13,573 children and adults; as well as The Institute for Catholic Studies and Formation.

Rev. Fausto Stampligia
Pastor of St. Martha Catholic Church

Fr. Stampiglia was born and raised in Rome, Italy. He is a Pallottine priest ordained in Rome on November 27, 1960 just two years before the opening of Vatican Council II. Father Fausto has the distinction of being the first pastor of St. Martha Church who belongs to a religious order, The Society of the Catholic Apostolate, known as the Pallottines. In 2010, Fr. Fausto was awarded the “Papal Medal of Pro Ecclesia et Pontiface” (for Church and Pope) by Pope Benedict XVI, the highest recognition for a priest, for his exemplary service to the church. In November 2010, Fr. Fausto celebrated his 50th anniversary as a priest by offering mass in Rome, where he was ordained, along with three of his fellow classmates.

Ms. Karen Brady
Nurse
kbrady@stmarthaschool.net

Ms. Brady is originally from Miami, FL and has been the School Nurse here since 2005. She has an A.S. degree in Nursing and graduated from Manatee College. She graduated from Manatee VoTech as LPN and her primary nursing experience was in the hospital setting, ranging from newborns to the elderly population. She is also a Licensed Aesthetician and has her Liberal Art/ Fine Art degree from Miami Dade College.

Mr. Rick Farnsworth, B.Sc.
Director of Technology, Assistant Principal at St. Martha Catholic School
rfarnsworth@stmarthaschool.net

Mr. Farnsworth is a Florida native and was raised in the Englewood area. Mr. Farnsworth received his Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Troy State University in Alabama. This will be his eighteenth-year in education with fourteen of those years in Technology with the Diocese of Venice. Mr. Farnsworth is a Florida certified teacher in Elementary Education and Computer Science.

Mrs. Kimber Marshall
Finance Manager
kmarshall@stmarthaschool.net

Mrs. Marshall is the Finance manager for both St. Mary Academy and St. Martha Catholic School. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting and a Master’s Degree in Taxation. Her family moved here from New Hampshire in 2014.

Mrs. Tammi Peters, M.A.
School Counselor
tpeters@stmarysarasota.org

Mrs. Peters was born and raised in Sarasota, Florida. After graduating from Sarasota High School, she attended the University of South Florida where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Special Education-Learning Disabilities in 1993. Mrs. Peters continued her education at USF and received her Master's Degree in Counselor Education in 1997. She was a School Counselor in the Sarasota County School System for 11 years before having a family with her husband. Both of her children now attend St. Martha Catholic School.

Mrs. Andrea Snead
Executive Assistant
asnead@stmarysarasota.org

Andrea Snead is originally from Middletown, Ohio, but moved to the Sarasota area to get away from the cold Ohio winters. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Human Factors Psychology from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2000. Mrs. Snead spent many years in the aviation/aerospace industry, but also devoted her spare time to building a business using her creative talents. For six years, she owned and managed a dance instruction business where she had the wonderful opportunity of sharing her love for dance with children of all ages. Andrea is married and has two children, Connor and Millie.

Ms. Connie Taft
Director of Development and Marketing
ctaft@stmarysarasota.org

Connie Taft is a longtime resident of Sarasota and attended Manatee Community College. She was a Licensed Insurance and Variable Annuities Agent before joining the Diocese of Venice and has a long history in the sales industry as a Store Manager of The Limited, and a Training Store Manager of The Gap, Inc. Connie is enjoying her 13th year with the Diocese of Venice. She is the ninth of eleven children and has three children of her own, Madison 25, Hannah 18 and Hayden 15. Connie is a singer and enjoys spending time with the special people in her life.