She had to endure the identical ritual of diagnosis, treatment that included the radiation and surgery so many millions of people have undergone. Nothing could have brought the message home more clearly for Arlene, who was already committed to the cause.
Fortunately for Arlene, she was very aware of the need for annual mammograms, and able to obtain them. Therefore, she had the good fortune to be diagnosed at an early stage, with “non-invasive” breast cancer which was caught early and treated immediately and successfully.
Her own bout with breast cancer and all of its attendant diagnostics and treatment, only served to further Arlene Palmer’s commitment to the cause. To date, she has raised in excess of $80,000 and has touched so very many lives a testament to her outward focus, perpetual good humor and enormous personal charisma. “Ms. Good Deeds” Goes to Washington
Allen School Controller Advocates for Breast Cancer Awareness on Capitol Hill
This spring, Arlene Palmer, who has been Allen School’s financial controller for almost twenty-five years, performed yet another one of her ongoing good deeds, this time on behalf of Breast Cancer Awareness. Along with a large advocacy group, Arlene traveled to Washington, DC, directly to Capitol Hill, to support research programs for the “underserved,” those women stricken with breast cancer who have no health insurance. Statistics indicate that one in eight women is diagnosed with breast cancer every three minutes.
Arlene’s interest in the area of Breast Cancer Advocacy began more than seven years ago when she offered to research a way for a friend of a friend, a woman without health insurance, to obtain a free mammogram. At just around that time, a neighbor of Arlene’s contracted breast cancer and lived just long enough to see her first grandchild, then dying within the year.
Arlene realized that women at every level were being stricken with breast cancer, irrespective of their ability to finance treatment. It was then that Arlene committed to participating in the ongoing battle to end the scourge that defines so many women’s lives.
Arlene, a very active woman whose husband, Shelly, is a retired Phys Ed teacher in the NYC school system, began by signing up for the marathon walk that Avon sponsors annually for the cause. This monumentally strenuous event involves extensive walking, 26 miles the first day, sleeping in tents, and then walking another 13 miles, all over a single weekend.
“I figured, I am always active,” Arlene said, “so why not do a walk and raise money that will benefit the underserved and, hopefully, one day find a cure so that we won’t have to continue to walk because we have to, but because we want to?”
Arlene participated in four consecutive annual Avon Walks. The camaraderie of the thousands of participants, survivors and advocates, and the vast extent of the effort, drove home to Arlene the scope and breadth of the disease and the impact it has, exponentially, on so many millions of families.
After the fourth year of participating in the Walk, Arlene “wanted to look at it from a different perspective,” so she volunteered to participate in what truly is the major effort involved in providing food service to the thousands of walkers – three full meals each day. Thousands and thousands of walkers, thousands and thousands of meals to set up, serve, and breakdown, a mammoth and massive effort involving major coordination and synchronicity.
For three consecutive years, Arlene was out there, rain or shine, lending her uniquely buoyant spirit and personality to the vast effort, until, ironically, she was diagnosed, in 2006, with breast cancer herself! She had to endure the identical ritual of diagnosis, treatment that included the radiation and surgery so many millions of people have undergone. Nothing could have brought the message home more clearly for Arlene, who was already committed to the cause.
Fortunately for Arlene, she was very aware of the need for annual mammograms, and able to obtain them. Therefore, she had the good fortune to be diagnosed at an early stage, with “non-invasive” breast cancer which was caught early and treated immediately and successfully.
Her own bout with breast cancer and all of its attendant diagnostics and treatment, only served to further Arlene Palmer’s commitment to the cause. To date, she has raised in excess of $80,000 and has touched so very many lives a testament to her outward focus, perpetual good humor and enormous personal charisma.
She had to endure the identical ritual of diagnosis, treatment that included the radiation and surgery so many millions of people have undergone. Nothing could have brought the message home more clearly for Arlene, who was already committed to the cause.
Fortunately for Arlene, she was very aware of the need for annual mammograms, and able to obtain them. Therefore, she had the good fortune to be diagnosed at an early stage, with “non-invasive” breast cancer which was caught early and treated immediately and successfully.
Her own bout with breast cancer and all of its attendant diagnostics and treatment, only served to further Arlene Palmer’s commitment to the cause. To date, she has raised in excess of $80,000 and has touched so very many lives a testament to her outward focus, perpetual good humor and enormous personal charisma. 
Ms. Pinder referred to 2008 as being an election year in which there are a few unusual “firsts.” She was referring to the first African-American candidate to go as far as Barack Obama, to the first woman candidate to go as far as Hillary Clinton, and to the first candidate for election to president over the age of seventy, John McCain. She encouraged her classmates to strive to accomplish other “firsts” in their upcoming careers.
Ms. Jewell’s address encompassed the intrinsic contribution that family makes to success in the medical field. She included in her description of family her immediate family, her classmates, and the doctors, patients and co-workers at her job at the cardiology practice where she did her internship.
“A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical caps and gowns that “individuality” is the key to success,” [Robert Orben, official speechwriter to former President Gerald Ford]
Individuality took many forms within the 2000 attendees at the graduation ceremony. Yes, there were the caps and gowns, the traditional uniform of graduation. The individuality was represented in full measure by the unique international flavor of the Allen School student body. The variety of awards acknowledging the accomplishments and skills of the many graduates showcased individuality, as well.
Quiet Reflection by Eddy Whitten, Jamaica’s Director of Admissions, began the ceremony. Whitten asked the graduates to reflect upon the strong connections they may have made to someone of another culture while at Allen School, or positive interactions with instructors who may have become mentors, or times at which laughter literally made their sides hurt. He expressed confidence that, throughout their lives, the graduates would experience clarifying moments at which certain fond memories would be evoked, reveries that related to time spent at Allen School and the people, knowledge and challenges shared and met there.
Current Queens Medical Assistant student, Sheneé Johnson, performed America the Beautiful in a clear, powerful voice that filled the vast recesses of the large auditorium.
Opening Remarks were made by Jamaica campus School Director, Annette Jill Luke, who, during her dedicated thirty years at Allen School, has shepherded thousands of graduates on their way to medical careers. Mrs. Luke spoke about the Allen School “network of lifelong connections” fostered by the programs, drawing a parallel between that “network” and that of the mega telecommunications company that showcases a network in its marketing.
Brooklyn’s Placement Director, Emelinda Jackson, delivered Words of Wisdom, warmly encouraging the grads to “never give up.” Ms. Jackson acknowledged this year’s graduates as the “cream of the crop,” noting that some them will, as has always been the case, “start out as Medical and Nursing Assistants and end up as doctors.” She recited the names of Career Development Award winners.
Mike Perez, Director of Admissions and Robert Jannicelli, MD, Academic Dean, both from the Brooklyn campus, did the Distribution of Diplomas, calling out the names of the hundreds of accomplished graduates who strode proudly across the stage to shake hands with Robert Teich and Jason Teich, President and Vice President respectively of the Allen School.
Dean Brian Ross of the Queens campus provided the Presentation of the Graduates to President Teich, acknowledging Mr. Teich’s profound personal commitment to the well-being of his students and lifelong dedication to putting their needs above all others.
The Professional Code for Health Career Graduates was read by Dean Gail Skeete of Brooklyn affirming that the new graduates, now full-fledged members of the global healthcare team, will be guided by their training and their individual hearts, and strive to be the best healthcare professionals possible.
Closing Remarks were made by Brooklyn campus Director Lillian Mitchell, whose devoted twenty-five year commitment to Allen School has helped to launch the careers of thousands of graduates. Mrs. Mitchell drew attention to the fact that the opportunity to obtain an education, an opportunity denied to most of the world’s people, is one to be recognized as a true privilege by the graduates. She urged them to “go forth” to make her and everyone at the Allen School proud.
The graduates streamed out of the auditorium to join families, friends and faculty members for photos. Graduation caps and gowns, balloons, teddy bears and scrolled diplomas, were bathed in brilliant sunshine as the end of the grads’ time at Allen School and the first day of their individual futures were memorialized.
Louisa, an Allen School Jamaica campus graduate, has been working at Mt. Sinai of Queens since her graduation in 2005. She had no way of knowing that this particular patient was a prominent New York congressman. It would not have mattered.
Nor did Louisa know that her name had been featured in a front page article in the hospital’s nursing department newsletter. A co-worker pointed out the article that announced that Louisa had received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition for the excellent care she had provided to a patient. Subsequent hand-written notes of acknowledgement were given to her from the Vice President of Nursing and the Executive Director of the hospital.
Allen School administration and faculty noted with admiration Louisa’s return to campus in January 2008 for twelve successive six-hour Saturday classes in Phlebotomy and EKG in order to add Nurse Tech to her credentials. While she was completing the Nurse Tech program, the special congressional recognition was awarded.
Married for 12 years to Scott Morrison, an RN whom she met at the ER of St. John’s Hospital in Queens while she was having an asthma attack, Louisa credits her husband’s “exceptional dedication and skill,” the mentoring of her nurse manager at Mt. Sinai, another RN, and her training at Allen School, with her decision to become an RN herself. She is now taking the prerequisites for the RN program.
“I am so very grateful to my wonderful manager at Mt. Sinai, Anne Pisciotta,” said Louisa. “She is an angel without wings, so very gentle. She always finds a way to make even difficult people feel good and happy and that is what I learned from her. My inspiration comes from her, my husband and from my very special teachers at Allen School, especially Miss Persaud.”
Allen School is proud of Louisa Morrison and honored to have played a part in launching the career of an individual whose respect for and devotion to patients comes from a true place in her heart, unrelated to their status or station in life. 
The art of instilling Marine corps values of “honor, courage and commitment” transitioned Whitten’s experience into what has become eight years as Director of Admissions at Allen School. Guiding his large team of career planners as it screens new applicants and makes critical selection of those who meet the criteria for admission, Whitten draws a strong parallel between the training and mentoring he did in the Corps with the training and mentoring he provides to his team. Under his guidance, the career planners are entrusted with selecting only “a few good men” (and women) for the Allen School programs. All candidates selected are further assessed by Whitten to determine whether they have what it takes to make the sacrifices necessary to get into shape for meeting the challenges of a career in the medical field and for making it into the Allen School Speed Staffing System™ program at the end.
Graduation day for Eddy Whitten is a celebration equal to that of graduating a platoon. “You can’t help but remember,” he says, ” the first day you met the student and feel great respect and appreciation for what they have accomplished as they are poised to enter their career of choice.”
Whitten is a champion in every way, including Racquetball for which he achieved #2 ranking in competition in San Diego, California (1995). He is also the father of daughter Latoya, who is also in the medical field, and grandfather of Elijah, 6.5 yrs. old 
It was called “Blue Wednesday” on campus, a nod to the Allen School’s Medical Assistant students whose royal blue scrubs create a “Sea of Blue” that traditionally draws attention to their annual on-street blood drive, an event that this time included the school’s Certified Nursing Assistants. McMullen was one of the energized and highly motivated Allen School donors who, for six hours, in conjunction with the Staten Island/New York Blood Center, turned the front of Brooklyn’s Borough Hall, at 209 Joralemon Street, into a monumental on-street lifesaving effort. 
Many high level representatives of the area’s leading medical facilities including Beth Israel Hospital, St. Luke’s Hospital, Roosevelt Hospital, Long Island College Hospital and NY Eye & Ear Infirmary were there for the “serenade of graduation” on June 15, 2007. The Deans of Philips Beth Israel School of Nursing, Long Island College Hospital School of Nursing and the Helene Fuld College of Nursing were honored guests, as well. Physicians also attended who are in private practices that regularly hire Allen School graduates and/or provide internships for them. Opening remarks, a work of thoughtful composition, by Jill Luke, Director of Queens, were followed by a duet of fond affection and respect, with Lillian Mitchell, Director of Brooklyn, to honor the original CEO, President and visionary of the Allen School, Loretta Teich. Following the interlude of honor and reverence for Mrs. Teich, was the keynote address, presented by Travis Williams, Senior Manager of Corporate Human Resources for HLTH Corporation (formerly Emdeon Corporation and WebMD).