A FRIEND INDEED
Educator steps in after teen’s tragedy
HER COMMITMENT to students goes beyond mere words.
Speech and language pathologist Dena Levin has for 40 years helped students improve their speech, vocabulary and writing skills — but when tragedy struck one of her students at Williamsburg Charter High School, Levin became much more than a teacher.
Bianca Mendoza — who this week will graduate from the Brooklyn school — learned her sophmore year that her mother had colon cancer. All the progress that Mendoza, who is deaf, made in fine-tuning her pronunciation and improving her writing skills came to a halt after the awful news, Levin said.
By junior year Mendoza was her mother’s only caregiver, and school was far from a priority.
“Bianca left school to take care of her mother because there was nobody else around to take care of her,” said Levin. “Her grades slipped significantly that semester, and she wasn’t thinking of coming back to school.”
Mendoza’s mother died in her arms. The heartbreaking loss was compounded by the fact she now had to support herself. Levin said she helped Mendoza, who had just turned 18, apply for state benefits to allow her to finish high school and apply to college.
“At first Bianca didn’t think she could succeed in college being deaf,” Levin said. “She had been told she was better off sitting at home taking classes online, but I saw her potential.”
For her dedication to Mendo- za’s education in the face of f daunting challenges, Levin is nominated for a Hometown n Heroes in Education award.
Levin even helped the teen apply to Gallaudet University, a private university in Washington, D.C., for the deaf and hard of hearing. The application deadline had passed, but Levin had a contact in admissions who, after hearing Mendoza’s story, helped her to expedite her application and get the fee waived.
Levin was by Mendoza’s side during her admissions interview in Washington.
“She could never have gone alone, and there was nobody in her family to go with her,” Levin said.
Mendoza was accepted and d received a full scholarship. This month, Mendoza will graduate from Williamsburg Charter High School and head to Washington to begin a summer program at Gallaudet, an accomplishment that would not be pos- sible without Levin’s constant support.
“We’re basically connected at the hip at this point, but it’s my pleasure. I love her,” Levin said. “I want my kids to do the best they can.”