St. Mary’s Secondary School Head Teacher

Schola, as she is warmly known, joined St. Mary’s in January 2025 from her former Head Teacher role in Mzuzu. She now serves as the second Headmistress of St. Mary's Secondary School.

She brings her academic expertise and years of leadership experience to the St. Mary’s community. Along with her teachers and administrative team, Schola helps every St. Mary’s student achieve academic excellence.

Co-Founder & Project Manager

On July 11, 2022, Peter unexpectedly passed away following a brief illness.

He spent nearly 50 years as a missionary in Africa and 18 years in Malawi building schools and health care facilities.

Peter came to Africa as a Peace Corp Volunteer in 1980. He served for years as the deputy director of Malawi's Lusubilo Orphan Care Project, a 2010 Opus Prize recipient. He then oversaw construction of St. Mary's Secondary School in Karonga and was working with the Marianist Brothers on another school project in Zambia before his passing.

During his lifetime, Peter raised thousands of dollars to subsidize secondary school and college tuition for disadvantaged students. In his honor, all future university students TeamLift supports in Malawi will be known as:

“Peter Daino Scholars.”

Co-Founder & Director

Throughout his career in the non-profit sector, Don has worked to alleviate the root causes of poverty and injustice. He retired in 2021 as the founding director of the Opus Prize Foundation, identifying faith-based social entrepreneurs across the globe for recognition.

His work with the Opus Prize led him to Malawi, where he co-founded TeamLift to address the educational, healthcare and nutritional needs of women and girls.

Operations Coordinator

Clement Mawala has been with TeamLift from its earliest days in Karonga. Hired to serve as a driver for U.S. and local staff, he has emerged as a cherished colleague who manages almost every aspect of logistics, local programming, and the daily operations of TeamLift Malawi. Clement helps coordinate home visits of prospective students, delivers emergency assistance for student families, and serves as TeamLift’s liaison to St. Mary’s Secondary School administration.

Lead Guidance Counselor

Joining the team in 2024, Maureen brings her experience as Program Coordinator at Lusubilo Community Orphan Care to her new position with at TeamLift. As Lead Guidance Counselor, Maureen coordinates training and support for our scholars at Univeristy. She connects with each young woman 1v1 to make sure they have the tools and support that they need to succeed in school. Maureen has quickly become a trusted resource for our students. We are honored to have her on board.

Financial Manager

Since the first shovel broke ground to build St. Mary’s Secondary School for Girls, Ryan Mpiu has managed all accounting functions for TeamLift Malawi. He is an accomplished financial manager who processes every construction invoice, prepares checks for signatures, and inspects all aspects of the work prior to payment. Ryan regularly issues financial reports for TeamLift’s administration, documents construction progress in photos, and oversees the annual audit process for TeamLift Malawi.

Program Coordinator

Joining our team in 2021, Rachel Steyer is an accomplished artist and youth counselor. She quickly captured the hearts and minds of St. Mary’s Secondary School students as host of a series of personal growth and art sessions – programs TeamLift and St. Mary’s will expand in the future. Believing in the importance of hosting mutually beneficial service projects, Rachel manages site visits including faculty and student volunteer teams from U.S. partner universities.

Physics & Mathematics Teacher

Head of the Humanities Department & Life Skills Teacher

Awarded Best Teacher in Northern Malawi in 2021

Chichewa & Social Studies Teacher

French & English Teacher

Deputy Head Teacher for Academics, Physics & Chemistry Teacher

Mathematics Teacher