SMYRNA—The Office of Catholic Schools for the Archdiocese of Atlanta welcomed a new director of marketing and enrollment and a new controller for three of its schools.

Diane Starkovich, Ph.D., superintendent of Catholic schools for the archdiocese, announced the hiring of Brian Dooling as director of marketing and enrollment and Brenda Leslie as controller for the archdiocese’s three northern CENGI schools.

There are 15 elementary and three secondary archdiocesan schools in Atlanta. Of these schools, six are additionally incorporated as Catholic Education North Georgia, Inc. (CENGI). Leslie will be working as controller for Blessed Trinity High School and Queen of Angels School, both in Roswell, and Holy Redeemer School in Johns Creek.

Brenda Leslie
Photo By Michael Alexander

Starkovich said Leslie will work closely with the principals and business staffs of the three schools.

The superintendent said that an outside consultant examined the financial structure of the northern CENGI schools last year to determine if there were additional best practices available and also reviewed the three schools’ budgets and financial practices for areas in which savings could be realized.

“Brenda’s strong background in both public and non-public finances brings unique skills to reviewing recommendations that we received while also analyzing other possible areas in which operating costs could be streamlined,” said Starkovich.

Leslie is a graduate of the University of New Orleans, where she earned a bachelor of science in accounting. She began her accounting career with KPMG in New Orleans. After leaving the firm, she continued her work in finance and accounting management with privately owned businesses before moving to Atlanta in 2004. In Atlanta, Leslie worked again for KPMG before becoming director of finance and human resources for Camp Twin Lakes, Inc.

“Working for Camp Twin Lakes for the last nine years allowed me to be part of guiding the organization’s tremendous growth in providing life-changing experiences to campers with serious illnesses, disabilities and other life challenges,” she said.

Leslie said she feels blessed to now be part of Catholic education in Georgia.

“I love working in mission-based organizations, and to be able to take that passion along with my experience to further the educational opportunities offered by the Archdiocese of Atlanta is a wonderful opportunity,” she said. “It will allow me to give back to a community that has so positively impacted my life and the lives of my family.”

A New Orleans native, Leslie and her husband, John, have two children, Alexandra and Graham. Both attended St. Joseph School in Marietta, and Alexandra is a 2016 graduate of Blessed Trinity High School. Graham is a member of the Class of 2019 at Blessed Trinity. They are parishioners of St. Joseph Church, Marietta.

Starkovich shared the importance of the marketing and enrollment position to be filled by Dooling.

“We have excellent Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, but we discovered in a recently completed research study that many individuals do not know much about our schools, particularly that our teachers are required to be certified and that our academic rigor and achievements by our students support the excellent academic formation provided,” she said. “It will be Brian’s job to market our schools and get this good word out to stakeholders. With his extensive background in marketing and his passion for Catholic schools, we hope to assist our schools in filling any empty seats still available.”

Dooling is a sales and marketing executive with broad problem-solving experience and strategic planning skills. He has over 30 years of experience in improving business processes and outcomes by creating focus and building momentum around practical, workable solutions.

Brian Dooling
Photo By Michael Alexander

Dooling, a founding member of St. Brigid Church, Johns Creek, is passionate about marketing, education and his faith and believes this role is an alignment of all three.

Most recently, he served as managing director of Trinitas Works, an independent marketing consulting firm, where he advised small to mid-size companies on sales, marketing and communications strategies to raise brand awareness and grow their businesses.

While reflecting on the new role, Dooling said, “I am extremely excited about the opportunity to market the value of Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Atlanta. Our award winning schools and well-educated, high quality teachers provide academic excellence throughout our system. Combining these characteristics in a faith-filled environment truly provides our students with an excellent foundation for lifelong success.”

He expressed hope that parents throughout the Archdiocese will continue to place their children in Catholic schools.

“I plan on actively marketing our schools to those families who are not yet enrolled so that they too, can learn firsthand, the tremendous difference a Catholic school education can make,” said Dooling.

He also served nine years as a training and personnel management officer in the United States Army Reserves, from which he retired honorably as a captain. Dooling is a graduate of Air Assault School.

At St. Brigid, he serves on the pastoral council, is a member of the Men of St. Brigid, the Knights of Columbus and is involved in several ministries.

Dooling has been active in supporting Life Teen Camp Covecrest through the years. He currently serves on the board of directors for the Catholic Foundation of North Georgia and on the board of trustees for A Beacon of Hope, a nonprofit women’s pregnancy center. He previously served on the Archdiocese of Atlanta School Advisory Council.

Dooling received a bachelor of arts in English from Boston College and a master of business administration degree from Harvard Business School.

He and his wife, Lisa, have been married for 25 years. The Doolings have five children who either currently attend or have attended Holy Redeemer School and Blessed Trinity.