Lenton Malry, Ph.D., is a driven man. Recently inducted into the Grambling State University's Alumni Hall of Fame, Dr. Malry has been a man on the go, in perpetual motion, from high school, through his years as a football letterman at Grambling, and through a 35 year career as an educator and public servant.
Not only has Dr. Malry been a dedicated, elected official and civil servant, a long-time community volunteer, a committed educator and advocate of Black people, all around the State of New Mexico, but he has proven himself, over the past 30 years, to be an innovative professional colleague, an outspoken legislator, concerned about children and equitable treatment of all persons.
One of the first honorees, as a ‘Living Legend,' during the Marsha K. Hardeman Black Cultural Conference, in partnership with the University of New Mexico, in the spring of 2007, promoting academic excellence, professionalism and preparation for business success for our young people, Malry was recognized as one whose life of service and political activism was committed to strengthening our minority communities and the quality of our lives, collectively.
Retired from Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) after 32 years as a teacher, principal and administrator, with 13 years, also, as an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of New Mexico, Dr. Malry received his B.S. in Elementary Education from Grambling State University. He earned a Master's of Education in Education Supervision from Texas College and obtained his Doctorate from the University of New Mexico in Administration.
Dr. Malry has served, both as the first Black elected official to the New Mexico State Legislature, House of Representatives, and as the first Black elected official to serve as a Bernalillo County Commissioner. It was his passion for public service that pulled him into the political arena, when no Afro-Americans had successfully navigated the political waters of New Mexico, previously. No stranger to being a ‘first,' Malry was also the first Black educator appointed to serve as an APS Principal, working, first, at John Marshall Elementary (1964-1967) and then at La Mesa Elementary (1968-1972),
While serving in the State Legislature, from 1968-1978, Malry learned, since 1912, the New Mexico State Constitution had prohibited any bill that specifically benefited a given race of people. Historically, this was thought to be the result of efforts to eliminate and prohibit any discriminatory legislation that might favor one group over another in this state of many cultures. At the turn of the 20th century, the protection was specifically to disallow preferential treatment for whites and to prohibit the exclusion of benefits to the Indian, Mexican and Spanish populations.
Representative Malry was approached by a group of people, representing the Black community, the medical community, state and local NAACP chapters, who educated him on the impact and prevalence of Sickle Cell Anemia and Sickle Cell Trait in the Black community and the need for Sickle Cell Screening. Malry responded by seeking the creation and passage of the Sickle Cell Bill to help provide for education and screenings throughout the Black communities of New Mexico. Because of the 1912 Constitutional provision, however, Malry had to amend the proposed legislation to comply with this legal requirement, prohibiting any reference to a specific racial group.
Another major piece of legislation which Representative Dr. Lenton Malry was proud to help pass was the Statewide Kindergarten Bill, when, in 1973, the States of New Mexico, Mississippi and Alabama were the only states in the United States that had not yet provided for statewide Kindergarten Education. As a former teacher and principal, Malry recognized the importance of kindergarten level education, and became a vocal advocate for the educational needs of these children.
Malry later took up the banner of yet another medical issue which greatly impacted minority families throughout New Mexico's communities, leading to a major legislative victory, as his advocacy helped pass legislation creating the first Neo-Natal Care Unit established in New Mexico, at the Bernalillo County Medical Center (BCMC), in 1976. Later re-named UNM and, presently, University Hospital, this facility became the foremost medical center to care for critically ill babies in the southwest.
Dr. Malry has also served in the Albuquerque School District as the Director of Human Resources for APS, the Affirmative Action Officer, as a Guidance Advisor and was elected, 1980 - 1988, as the first African American on the Bernalillo County Board of County Commissioners and the first Black to serve as County Chairman from 1983-1984 and 1987-1988. Malry presently serves on the Council of Education for the State of New Mexico and is a supporter of the University of New Mexico Friends of Education, College of Education. His wife and college sweetheart, Joy, states that, "Mal has that kind of energy, as if he is still playing college football. He is always on the go."
Malry has now returned to Bernalillo County government, where he still approaches his job of Neighborhood Program Coordinator withthe vitality and purpose of a new employee.With the same energy, purpose and passion that landed him the challenge and privilege of being Albuquerque's first Negro school Principal in 1964, Malry says, "It's all about making lives better."