Upper School Learning Resources specialist Brianna Malin will be leaving Latin at the end of the 2024-25 school year after four years of dedicated support to students and faculty alike. Announced via email on April 22, she is leaving to get married in August and pursue a career as a mental health therapist.
“This decision has not been easy for me for many reasons, as I genuinely love my job here at Latin,” Ms. Malin said in an email to LR students and their families. “However, I am confident that it is the right time to take a risk on myself before my future husband and I start to grow our family.”
Before coming to Latin, Ms. Malin served as a learning specialist at Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart, a private all-girls high school in the suburbs, which is how she first came into contact with Latin’s LR program. “I went to a professional development opportunity where I met the former learning specialist at Latin,” she said. “They were doing the best work that I’ve ever seen, and I really wanted to learn from them.”
Ms. Malin then served as the Accessibility Specialist at Loyola University. With a caseload of hundreds of students and thousands of testing accommodations, she felt the need for a shift away from this large capacity. “I felt like COVID was a good time to pivot back to younger students to get them ready for college,” she said. “Then I saw this job open up and applied.”
During her four years at Latin, Ms. Malin’s impact has extended far beyond one-on-one sessions with her students. She has also worked to reshape the understanding of learning differences across the school.
“One thing I have tried to do a lot that students might not be aware of is trying to educate faculty about what a different learner looks like in the classroom, and how there are small ways we can inform teachers to better understand students and their learning styles,” Ms. Malin said.
She worked toward this goal in a variety of ways, including hosting Lunch and Learn sessions to provide faculty with concrete tools to support students.
“My second year, I implemented a program called MindPrint. All of the ninth graders did it, and it helped students understand how they learned,” Ms. Malin said. “I used those tools to educate faculty of what we were seeing as trends in their classrooms.”
While those ideas helped shape classroom practices, it’s the personal relationships Ms. Malin built with students that stand out most to her.
“I’ve worked with many students here, even in the senior class when they were freshmen,” she said. “Watching them progress into their best selves through each year is so rewarding.”
These students who worked closely with Ms. Malin said her departure would leave a noticeable absence in their daily lives next year.
“She was one of the nicest people in the school to me,” junior Ruby Larsen said. “She always made the time for me and a bunch of other students, and I am sad to see her leave.”
One of the ways Ms. Malin helped Ruby was by planning extended time on tests so that Ruby could take tests within a required timeframe, all without missing class. “She was very accommodating with my schedule and was even willing to come in the morning before school,” Ruby said.
In addition to logistics, Ms. Malin empowered students to communicate with teachers. “[She] helped me feel more comfortable advocating for myself,” Ruby said. “Ms. Malin always gave me the courage and the tools to approach [teachers].”
Upper School LR specialist Elizabeth Underwood emphasized that Ms. Malin’s work was driven by compassion. “[She] is someone who has worked at the school and really has never expected anyone to give her credit for a lot of the work that she’s done,” Ms. Underwood said. “She loves the students that she works with, she loves the families that she works with, and I think it shows. A lot of students have strong relationships with her and go to her as a trusted adult in the building.”
Having worked with Ms. Malin closely, Ms. Underwood also attested to the way she shaped the culture of the LR Department itself. “My experience working with Ms. Malin has truly been a joy. When you are a team of only two people, you really get to know each other closely, and it also gives the opportunity to learn from one another,” Ms. Underwood said. “Being new to Latin last year, I really leaned on her to learn how the Upper School and LR [work]. She’s been such a mentor to me in a lot of ways, and we have a really good friendship.”
Ms. Malin’s next chapter is guided by the same spirit that defined all of her previous jobs and current ones: a passion for helping others feel heard and supported. “My goal is to become a mental health therapist, and help young adults see what I see in them,” she said.
Looking ahead, she acknowledged that the transition won’t be easy, but it will be meaningful. “The day-to-day job of a therapist is definitely not as collaborative, and there’s probably not going to be the same energy,” Ms. Malin said. “It’s going to be scary and different, and that’s exciting to me.”
She added, “This is really hard for me to leave such a great place to work, and I love it here. It’s just that my life is changing in so many new ways, so I have to go with my gut.”
Latin is in the final stages of hiring a new specialist to fill Ms. Malin’s role. While the department prepares for this change, Ms. Underwood reflected on what she brought to the school.
“There are a lot of exciting things happening in her life, and I’m so very happy for her and support her in the next step of her journey,” Ms. Underwood said. “But we have a lot to be grateful for the positive impact that she’s had at Latin.”
Ruby said, “I want to thank her for everything she has done for me over the past couple years because the impact she has had on me is immeasurable. I hope whatever she goes on to do, she enjoys it, and I wish her luck.”
