{"id":67929,"date":"2025-05-05T08:55:32","date_gmt":"2025-05-05T12:55:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=67929"},"modified":"2025-05-12T09:15:57","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T13:15:57","slug":"from-holistic-healer-to-social-worker-lori-colettas-path-to-purpose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/05\/from-holistic-healer-to-social-worker-lori-colettas-path-to-purpose\/","title":{"rendered":"From holistic healer to social worker, Lori Coletta\u2019s path to purpose"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Lori

Lori Coletta shakes hands with College of Health, Education and Professional Studies Dean Valerie Rutledge as she crossed the McKenzie Arena stage during Graduate School commencement on Friday, May 2. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

As advanced degree recipients from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga\u2019s Graduate School crossed the McKenzie Arena stage on Friday, May 2, one in particular stood out\u2014not because of a number, but because of her story.<\/p>\n

At 62 years of age, Lori Coletta accepted her Master of Social Work degree\u2014a moment of \u201clegitimacy\u201d marking the culmination of a decades-long path rooted in advocacy, exploration and the pursuit of purpose.<\/p>\n

Coletta\u2019s commencement was less about pomp and ceremony and more about validation of a life spent in service and a decision to return to the classroom later in life.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis degree gives me legitimacy,\u201d she said. \u201cNow I can walk into places with credentials that open doors. But more than that, it\u2019s a continuation of what I\u2019ve been doing my whole life\u2014helping others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Originally from Long Island, New York, Coletta left home at 18 and ventured west.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo west, my daughter, became more than a phrase,\u201d she said with a smile. \u201cIt became a lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her why of leaving home, she explained, was a combination of youthful inspiration and a desire to be immersed in nature, \u201cwhich has become a guiding force throughout my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her path has included living in Arizona, California, Hawaii and Colorado. Her travels have taken her to Brazil, Japan, Canada and Mexico.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve cycled all over the western United States and I\u2019ve kayaked many of the rivers out there\u2014283 miles through the Grand Canyon at 39 years old. At 40, I ran a marathon up in Vancouver,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Coletta has been a licensed massage therapist, a shiatsu practitioner, a cook, a traveler, a mother\u2014and now, a social worker.<\/p>\n

\"Lori

Lori Coletta<\/p><\/div>\n

Coletta\u2019s educational journey officially started in 1983 at Prescott College in Arizona, where she studied human development and holistic health. She didn\u2019t graduate right away\u2014as her studies led her to professional holistic health opportunities\u2014but she eventually returned to school to complete her bachelor\u2019s degree in 2008.<\/p>\n

She then went on to earn a graduate certificate in global health and development from the University of Arizona College of Public Health in 2013.<\/p>\n

But it wasn\u2019t until she returned east a few years ago\u2014with her partner, Terry Stone, to care for their aging mothers\u2014that the idea of pursuing a master\u2019s degree in social work came into focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen my father passed, the experience of working with social workers during that time was so profound,\u201d Coletta said. \u201cThat was the epiphany. I originally thought I would pursue hospice care, and I still might. Aging populations have always been close to my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Coletta, the UTC MSW program became a way to channel a lifetime of service and advocacy into focused, credentialed work. She praised the program\u2019s flexibility, its faculty, and the depth of fieldwork she was able to experience.<\/p>\n

Her internships reflected a broad sweep of social work\u2019s reach\u2014from Health Connect America, working with young children and their families, to Parkridge Valley, a psychiatric hospital for adults and seniors, to her work in recent months helping launch MobileMOC.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat trajectory\u2014from children to adults to seniors\u2014was incredibly powerful,\u201d Coletta said. \u201cSocial work is about walking alongside people at every stage of life.\u201d<\/p>\n

In her work with MobileMOC, UTC\u2019s mobile outreach clinic serving rural communities, she was able to participate in Bingocize\u00ae sessions\u2014which are interactive programs blending physical activity, health education and social connection for older adults.<\/p>\n

She described working with Bingocize\u00ae participants at a Whitwell, Tennessee, senior center as \u201csome of the most meaningful experiences of my time at UTC.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThese seniors in Whitwell felt stronger and more connected,\u201d she said. \u201cThat feedback\u2014knowing we made a difference\u2014meant everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lori

Lori Coletta (second from right) and members of the MobileMOC team at the March 13 event celebrating the vehicle’s arrival. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

Coletta said community has always been central to her identity.<\/p>\n

In Arizona, she worked with the Iskashitaa Refugee Network, organizing food harvesting forays, teaching geography and building cultural bridges between refugees and indigenous populations. She also worked with the International Rescue Committee, helping resettle families through community gardening and nutrition programs.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdvocacy, community, social justice\u2014those aren\u2019t new ideas for me,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019ve always been part of who I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Coletta moved to Chattanooga, she didn\u2019t have that community. Pursuing her MSW helped her find one.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like Chattanooga,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a little more progressive. It gave me the opportunity to reconnect\u2014to education, to people, to service.\u201d<\/p>\n

Juggling graduate school at age 59 wasn\u2019t easy, she said. While taking a full load of classes and completing 20-plus hours of internship work each week, Coletta also worked part-time cooking at Whole Foods.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy one day off, I did homework all day,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was a lesson in tenacity. You just take it one step at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Throughout her time in the social work program, Coletta became increasingly passionate about aging populations, chronic disease management and physical activity\u2014all areas in which her public health background and holistic health experience converged.<\/p>\n

She believes the path forward lies in prevention and connection.<\/p>\n

\u201cCommunity is crucial to mental health. Movement is crucial to aging well. We\u2019re about to see the pyramid of aging turn upside down\u2014there will be more people over 65 than ever before,\u201d she said. \u201cWe need to keep people healthy longer and we need systems in place that recognize the full picture: medical, physical, emotional and social.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always helped people, and it never mattered who they were. We always need to stand up for those who need it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She credited the UTC social work faculty\u2014especially the guidance of Clinical Associate Professor April Wilson and Associate Professor Cathy Scott\u2014for supporting her growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe internships, the mentorship, the real-world experience\u2014it all mattered,\u201d she said. \u201cI learned how to move through things with purpose and I\u2019ve seen that this field is exactly where I\u2019m meant to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her advice for other nontraditional students considering a return to the classroom?<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t give up on yourself. Find your passion and move toward it,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re living longer. Retirement doesn\u2019t mean you stop contributing. If anything, now\u2019s the time to give back.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for what she wants to be when she grows up?<\/p>\n

\u201cA contributor,\u201d she said. \u201cTo our society, to our communities, to the Earth.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a perpetual student; I could be a student forever. But now, I also get to be a social worker\u2014and that feels like exactly the right next step.\u201d<\/p>\n

Learn more<\/h4>\n

Visit UTC<\/a><\/p>\n

UTC\u00a0Social Work<\/a><\/p>\n

How to apply<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Lori

Lori Coletta and Interim Chancellor Robert Dooley<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As advanced degree recipients from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga\u2019s Graduate School crossed the McKenzie Arena stage on Friday, May 2, one in particular stood out\u2014not because of a number, but because of her story. At 62 years of age, Lori Coletta accepted her Master of Social Work degree\u2014a moment of \u201clegitimacy\u201d marking the culmination of a decades-long path rooted in advocacy, exploration and the pursuit of purpose.<\/p>\n

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