Mrs. Mary Curry was born in the South, and witness to economic, social and educational injustices which helped develop her unshakable commitment to improving the lives of her community. She attended elementary and high school in Denver, Colorado, and majored in music education at the University of Kansas. As a community activist she founded Concerned Citizens for Quality Education; an organization crucial in the struggle for educational equality in Fresno during the 1970s and 1980s when bussing and desegregation decisions were wreaking havoc on African American communities nationwide. Mrs. Curry and Concerned Citizens engaged in principled dialogue with the Fresno Unified School District Board and its Superintendent, protested inequality in the street, enacted district-wide boycotts, and successfully defended further erosion of West Fresno schools – forcing the District to reexamine policies on school violence, parent involvement, and diversity amongst teachers and administrators. She was elected to the Fresno Unified Board of Trustees in 1985 and reelected in 1990 as the first African American elected to the Board of Trustees and later Board President.

Mrs. Curry’s commitment to education is further evidenced by the successful Edison Computech program proposed by Concerned Citizens for Quality Education, and her role in securing Transformative Climate Community funds for the West Fresno City College Satellite Campus. She remains a strong advocate for West Fresno; seeing that all children have access to the highest quality education, all people are treated with dignity and respect, and all families live in safe and healthy environments.