We’re looking forward to introducing you to Dr. Allison Scavo. Check out our conversation below.
Allison, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is a normal day like for you right now?
I work as an assistant principal where there’s never a dull moment. I feel like I’m constantly doing the equivalent of spitting on a house fire: it’s just never enough. I give probably 90% of all that I am to that school. Then I pick my son up, run home, let the dogs out, clean the house a little bit, and then run out the door to get to the next show. On days where I don’t have a show, you can find me mindlessly scrolling to avoid the thoughts of what I’ll have to go through the next day at work. If you are close to a teacher, stop reading this and go hug them. They need it, I promise.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am Dr. Allison Scavo, Ed.D. I am a full time assistant principal at a school in Kansas City and a full time concert photojournalist where I collaborate with no fewer than six magazines. I am also the only parent to a teenager who is the entire reason all this even started. He saved my life in 2021 after a brutal domestic violence attack in Columbia, MO. I was a special education teacher at the time to students with autism with behavioral challenges or separate behavioral based diagnoses. I knew for a fact they would never move me up the ladder, so I broke all chains with both the schools and the abuser. It took years to rebuild my brand, my name, and my reputation but I think at this point the name and brand speaks for itself: I just want a good life because I almost didn’t have a long life.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
I can’t really answer this question without severely trauma dumping. I was three though, and I remember everything including the color of the couch and what I was wearing. Be mindful of who you leave your children with. Not everyone is a good person.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
I’m going to give a disclaimer, if you are easily triggered or don’t want to hear about suicide, please scroll to the next question.
It was late January 2022. My abuser would not leave me alone. In one month he called five wellness checks on me and had the police at my house so frequently that I qualified for the Safe At Home program. I had to break my lease, find somewhere new to live, all while being an only parent without support in a new town on a teacher’s salary. And that was just the beginning. I had a miscarriage that led to a DNC and I was extremely sore from that, plus the mental strain losing a child took on my mind and hormones. I was packing and found a gun. I had already been forced into marrying him, divorced him after 131 days, and been strangled to the point where as I am typing this now in 2025 my voice and throat still are not the same, and they never will be. On top of this, when he did finally leave, his friends stole all my books and baby photos so I was at a point in my life where I didn’t even know what I did and did not own anymore. My entire life was one big dark room. And I had to pack it up again because of him.
So I’m in my closet packing and I found my unloaded gun. I genuinely don’t remember what I did next, but when I gained consciousness I could just feel the cold metal in my hands, bullets in the magazine, and I was struggling to get the magazine in the chamber due to the excessive shaking. Tears were flowing down my cheeks. I was screaming. I put the gun down and walked away, coming back later to unload it. I sold it within the next week. I still think about that a lot – how I’ve never related to a woman on an episode of Snapped where they say “I snapped, I don’t remember, and the next thing I know it was over.” I’m really grateful it wasn’t over for me, and I haven’t attempted since.
Somewhere along the way I had to have posted something cryptic. I still, as I’m typing this, have no idea what I posted but someone said “This is serious. I know we’ve never met but I gather you like music?” We went out that night and something within me awoke. I was crying to “Old Number Seven” by Devil Makes Three. I listened to it the whole way home.
The next night I went out again and the drummer was playing the second night as well. He mentioned in passing that his band needed photos because Covid had changed their looks. I knew I had a camera in the same closet as the gun, so I grabbed it and went to a Colby Gile show. Within three months I was working with Slash and Bob Weir, and the following month I worked with Snoop Dogg and Warren G. It literally changed the trajectory of my life. In Jan I tried to kill myself, in Feb I was working with local musicians, in March I was working with Grammy winners. It saved me.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
The political climate of today was intentionally curated. If we are too focused on surviving we can’t possibly focus on revolting. The wealth gap is higher today than it was during the French Revolution, by the way. Protests do work. Never cross a picket line. NASCAR being more diverse than the White House is telling.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I’ve thought about this a lot. I’d stop saving money. I’d pour all of it into my son’s college plan, eating out every meal. I’d buy a Harley and place a bet with God on who takes me out sooner: Him or the Harley. Oh, and I’d finance a boat don’t even play with me. I’d get married again to make up for the abuse disguised as love. One thing I learned when I thought I was taking my last breath: do what you want, you’re going to go anyway.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://scavosphotos.com
- Instagram: @scavosphotos
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/scavosphotos
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