Alumni Spotlight: Tom Parker

I graduated from Servite in 1999. I remember the lead up to graduating was quite a big deal as we were the last cohort to graduate for the millennium.

I really enjoyed Human Biology, and this subject has served me well in my career as a clinical psychologist. I continue to be fascinated by the human body, brain and mind. This early exposure to learning about the human body created a spark that facilitated pursuing tertiary education in a related area.

My other interest at school was sport. At that stage, I was committed to pursuing a professional sporting career in the AFL. Unfortunately, despite going close, this ambition was impeded by injury. However, I am fortunate to have learned a lot from these painful experiences and now help younger athletes manage the rollercoaster of life as a professional sportsperson.

I was lucky to be involved in a cohort that really enjoyed the social aspects of school. We bonded well with the teachers who supported our humour and allowed us to create fabulous memories of having a great deal of fun together. For my colleagues, having an academic focus came secondary to having a great time at school. Certainly, break times and extracurricular activities like football, cricket and surfing were the times I cherished most.

I have fond memories of after school surfing with Ken Taylor, which involved a surf camp to Margaret River at the end of the year. We had a blast and looking back on this now, I realise how much responsibility Ken had at the time and how well he managed it.

I am incredibly fortunate to have had a great career in mental health, both in clinical and performance psychology. After school, I went on to obtain a Bachelor of Science (Honours) degree from UWA and then later a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, also from UWA.

During the early part of my career, I was thrust into leadership roles and so this became a genuine interest of mine – supporting the next generation of psychologists in our field. The second part of my career involved working at the elite level in professional sport as a psychologist. I am privileged to say I have worked with the West Coast Eagles and was the team psychologist for WA Cricket Men’s team for two years. There could be another stint in professional sport in the near future.

I founded a private practice called Headway Psychology in 2019 and since this time, the organisation has developed into one of the most successful psychology private practices in Perth. We have a more holistic approach to the management of mental health that involves dietetics, exercise and psychology – three important areas linked to mental health. My current role as Director involves supporting our managers who guide a large team of 37 people. Our team does amazing work. We have strong organisational values and deliver exceptional services for our clients. We deliver services at two beautiful offices in Subiaco and Shenton Park.

I have fond recollections of Laurie Mayne helping to prepare our school cricket team to perform against some of the other schools. I would wait all day and count down the hours until it was game time. I didn’t know it at the time (as my focus was on football), but I would later realise that I have a genuine passion for the game of cricket that as an adult has involved playing and coaching at community level. I am fortunate to still be working with a few professional cricketers and helping them to prepare for the BBL and for other competitions around the globe.

On the sporting field, I am proud to say I played WAFL league football for Claremont and West Perth, in addition to being part of one of the most successful amateur sporting clubs in Australia – The Cervantes Football Club. I am lucky to have played in seven premierships for Cervantes, made several lifelong friends and the only player to date to kick over 100 goals in a season.

My most proud achievements are my family. I have a beautiful wife, Hayley, who is also our dietitian at Headway and who also shares a passion for people and health. We have three children, Emmi (11), Easton (8) and Rylee (5) who are developing and growing into great little people. We have strong family values that have come from our Catholic school community backgrounds. That is being kind, humble and generous. Being of assistance and serving others is important to our family.

I am incredibly grateful to have made a career of helping and being of service to others. I have no doubt that my exposure to a school that had strong values and religious underpinnings helped to shape my views on what is important in life – that is good health and quality relationships.

I’d like to thank all my teachers and fellow students for making my time at Servite enjoyable and fulfilling. I have fond memories of my school experiences that I will cherish forever.