By Emily Deskevich

Parthemos at the box office in Oates Theater. Photo courtesy of Collegiate School.

For the past 30 years, Kate Parthemos (‘71) has been a staple of the Collegiate community as a Lower School receptionist, Cougar Shop manager, and most recently as Collegiate’s Fine Arts Assistant. However, this year we will say farewell to Parthemos and thank her for all that she has done for Collegiate.

In 1992, Parthemos joined Collegiate’s faculty, but this was not the first time she had been a member of the Collegiate community. Parthemos is a member of Collegiate’s class of 1971, and her five younger siblings followed her in the years. They all grew up in Richmond and attended Collegiate. Thinking back to her days as a student, Parthemos stated, “it was fun, all my siblings were here.” One of those siblings is Rives Fleming (‘83), a current Middle School teacher and cross country coach, who began working at Collegiate prior to his sister. When discussing the return back to Collegiate as a faculty member, Parthemos remarked, “it was a switch, I had always been everyone’s big sis, and he was my little brother, but now I was his sister. He was already so well known.” Parthemos still enjoys the little moments during the days where she may run into Fleming in the cafeteria, or after a Middle School assembly, and he will give her a fist bump and smile. 

Parthemos with husband, Stel, son, Chris (’06), and daughter-in-law, Emily. Photo credit: Kate Parthemos.

While an alumna of Collegiate, Parthemos is also the parent to 2006 graduate Chris Parthemos. She has also watched nieces and nephews, including the four children of Rives and Suzanne Fleming, Collegiate’s Director of Service Learning and Civic Engagement, graduate as Cougars.

When comparing her time at Collegiate in the 1960s and 1970s to that of a current student, Parthemos recalls the division of the boys school and the girls school. Fifth through twelfth grade girls spent their time studying and taking classes in Flippen Hall, currently the Middle School building. Fifth through twelfth grade boys took classes in Pitt Hall, currently the Upper School building. Parthemos also recalled that during her junior and senior years, a new rule regarding dress code was set into place. Parthemos states, “we finally were allowed to wear pants, nice slacks; the restrictions were a little different than they are today.” In her time as a student, Parthemos was the photography editor for Collegiate’s yearbook, The Torch, as well as a member of the Collegiate Thespian Troupe. 

When Parthemos returned to Collegiate in 1992, she assumed the role of Lower School receptionist under the leadership of Dr. Jill Hunter. During her time in the Lower School, Parthemos answered the phones for Lower School needs and helped out with the admissions office. After two years in the Lower School, Parthemos took over as the manager of Collegiate’s bookstore, The Cougar Shop, where she stayed for 17 years. Her most recent job has been the Fine Arts Assistant in the Hershey Center for the Arts. Her responsibilities include theater manager, ticketing, assisting with costumes for shows, ushering, and many other jobs as needed. Upper School student and Thespian troupe president Alice Hallock (‘22) describes Parthemos as, “Collegiate’s own superwoman.” Hallock said, “We are so grateful for everything she has done for Collegiate, and I can’t imagine what the Hershey Center and the Collegiate community are going to do without her next year.”

As Parthemos reflects on her time at Collegiate, one her favorite aspects has been getting to watch her family grow and learn at this school. She has also enjoyed getting to work on plays and productions. Parthemos’ interest for Collegaite’s theater department began when her son and niece took an interest in the program. 

Another one of Parthemos’ favorite memories she shared was when she used to dress up as Mrs. Claus during Collegiate’s holiday boutique. During the holiday season, Parthemos also enjoys helping with Pageant, where she assists with bearding and dressing the senior girls selected to be the kings. 

Upon leaving at the end of this year, Parthemos plans to spend more time volunteering at St. Thomas Episcopal Church’s food pantry, spending two or three days a week dedicated to feeding families at her church. Parthemos also looks forward to traveling during her time off, especially to University of Virginia sporting events. “We [husband and herself] are both UVA grads and big fans, so we will go to more games.” Parthemos also has family scattered across the country, so she is excited to visit more family during her free time. 

I know I can speak for the Collegiate community when I say we will miss Kate Parthemos and all she has done for this school.