On April 1st, the Curtis community was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Mrs. Bea Mallen, a school aide in the College Office and dear member of our school’s faculty. In order to bring to light a fuller picture of her dedication and hard work throughout the years, we spoke with Ms. Lisset Marin, college advisor, and Mrs. Mallen’s coworker.

In her nearly eighteen years of work at Curtis High School, Mrs. Mallen has been overwhelmingly characterized as passionate and caring. Though her official title was school aide, there was never a problem that she couldn’t solve or a task too big for her to take on. She was described by Ms. Marin as her right hand, an essential part of college application success for the thousands of students who had the good fortune to work with her. Anything that needed to be done, Mrs. Mallen was there, ready to provide assistance and guidance to students and take on work for the benefit of others. Ms. Marin told a story of how at one point, the College Office lost a secretary and so Mrs. Mallen took it upon herself to complete the database entries until the position was filled again. She was smart, adaptable to the inevitable changes in the application process, and worked hard to understand the things she didn’t already know. She took care of the little things behind the scenes that allow the College Office to run smoothly even during the busiest of times.

Not only was Mrs. Mallen known to be unwaveringly helpful, but was also friendly in an environment that can be intensely stressful and competitive. She answered questions, found answers, and went the extra mile to ensure student success. In response to the request for letters from students and staff about Mrs. Mallen, Victoria Medas wrote about her first interaction with the college advisor. She needed to take the SAT on Sunday instead of the standard Saturday due to interference with her religious practice. Victoria said that Mrs. Mallen stayed on top of everything, going further to say, “It really meant a lot to me because while many people don’t know that much about my religion, she knew some things and was willing to learn the rest. Having someone be so attentive and caring about my situation made the process very easy and I am eternally grateful to her for that.”

Ms. Marin took the last couple of minutes of our interview to give her own description of Mrs. Mallen. Unassuming, quietly helpful, and humble, she never expected any praise for the work she did. The College Office can be a busy place, though she hardly ever left for personal breaks and it was a very big deal that she was as involved and available as she was. In this time of grief, we wish to all that knew her, all the family, friends, students, and staff who had the pleasure of knowing and loving her, our deepest condolences. The work that Mrs. Mallen did for our school and students will never be forgotten, may she rest in peace.