In the halls you will find a string of students that lead to an intelligent, supportive and fashionable woman named Dr. Pamela Malone. 

The students gravitate towards
her because of her ear-catching personality and her passion for educating students. Malone is located in the Social Science department and her concentration is Sociology. 

Sociology is a broad yet fascinating field and Malone has publicized this information to the thousands of students she has encountered over the years. Malone is part of the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences and educates students in African-American Social Thought, Culture, Marriage and Family, Juvenile Delinquency and Intro to
Sociology.  

She is extremely passionate about enlightening students on the importance of education, becoming involved in your community and giving back to society, as well as surrounding yourself with individuals who support your educational goals. 

Malone encourages all of her students to get involved in their communities and help in areas where they can make a difference. 

Her mother promoted the importance of giving back to the community and in fact would attend the brainstorming conferences to support Malone. 

MATC teaches a student how to become a professional, and Malone always shares her belief of what “professional” means. 

“Professionals are supposed to be altruistic and not just think about themselves. Professionals give back, they donate time and money. Get involved in something,” said Malone. “Giving and helping in the community is very rewarding.  Getting involved and volunteering gives you the ability to use skills you never knew you had and learn new skill sets as well,” stated Malone.

Since Wisconsin has been the “hot spot” regarding politics and Malone has managed several political campaigns, the question arises, “When it comes to political affairs, what does living in Wisconsin mean to you?” Malone answers, “I am a member of a professional union and I believe in unions. Unions have been one of the most important vehicles for upward mobility for African Americans and women. I think that unions have been given a bad name and Wisconsin has tried to vilify them. Unfortunately the last couple years have been tense and I’ve seen many of the values I believe in fall. Overall, it’s been nerve-wracking living in Wisconsin.”

It may be a bit stressful being a Wisconsinite; however, nothing has changed about the devotion she has for her students.

Malone is a very well-known instructor around the campus and students come to her for advice on their education. She’s a member of the mentor program at MATC and supports her students so much she has given letters of recommendation to help her students succeed and fulfill their goals. 

Malone even helped over 25 students register for classes this past semester. She truly loves educating students and stated, “My greatest accomplishment is always the students I produce. I like the multicultural student body and my classes are so diverse as well,” said Malone. 

The students come from all different backgrounds and she’s happy to see them working hard to better their lives. “When I see the good positive results in my students it makes me happy and very proud,” stated Malone.

Malone’s mother was very supportive and encouraged her to take on challenges that most people would shy away from or turn their backs on because the topic or situation was too controversial. 

Malone came from a small yet close family where college was expected and not a choice. “You were expected to graduate from high school at 17, take the ACT and go to college,” says Malone.  She started her college education at Lakeland, earned her undergraduate in Philosophy and received a scholarship to law school at Marquette University. Excited, driven and prepared to take on another direction, she attended for a year; however, at that time sexism was very pronounced and she was confronted with gender inequality at its worst.  

While facing a big decision, she reached out to both her mother and brother (a sociology major and PhD) for advice but eventually decided herself to go to graduate school versus continuing at Marquette University. 

By this time Malone knew she didn’t want to be in K-12 education or study an educational system and be an educator.  Ultimately she preferred to study students, focus on academic achievement in students and figure out how to improve student achievement. In graduate school she was exposed to the Department of Urban Social Institutions, which is the predecessor of urban studies now. She was team taught by historians, sociologists, economists, lawyers and said it was truly interdisciplinary. 

Malone believed it helped with learning, assisted with understanding more diverse beliefs, and made more sense. 

During graduate school she met Dr. Harold Rose, a great role model, an incredible researcher in urban education, who published several books, and is world-renowned. She looked up to him, reached out for guidance and in time was hired by Rose. 

Malone wrote her first booklet under the direction of Rose, published by the Milwaukee Urban Observatory on School Desegregation. 

Her first publication was included as an appendix in Desegregation for Milwaukee Public Schools and is citied nationally. For the last 18 years, Malone has been a member of the Community Brainstorming Conference in Milwaukee. She is one of two females who have been vice chair of the committee in the last 25 years and she continues to chart new directions for the organization while preserving the things the group has already accomplished. 

This non-profit organization’s mission is to inform the public on local topics such as: education, crime, community issues, etc. 

An educational conference would include the school board members and a crime prevention conference would include the sheriff, police chief and district attorney. 

MATC has been a conference topic–the degrees offered as well as the difference in two-year education costs versus other Milwaukee four-year college costs.

The Community Brainstorming Conference has been mentioned on Milwaukee talk radio and in the local newspapers during these political times as well.

Malone promotes to her students that living a healthy lifestyle is important. The more balanced you are the better you will be as a student. She recommends making healthy food choices, reading labels, and implementing a good amount of exercise in your life.  

In addition, she said to take advantage of the gym before, in-between or after class. Malone is always running around and the joke with her students is, if you want to keep up with her you have to run and that’s with her four inch heels … if she wears her tennis shoes, it’s a sprint! 

Dr. Malone, your dedication inspires us all!!