Dr. Roni Leigh Dean Burren

Dr. Roni Leigh Dean Burren, beloved wife, mother, daughter, educator, and activist, transitioned home to be with the Lord the evening of November 24 th in Missouri City, Texas, surrounded by her husband of 24 years and best friend, Lilo Burren and her cherished children, Mars and Dani Burren. Her passing was covered in prayer by a global community for whom the memory of her friendship and impact will forever be a blessing.
Along with her immediate family, Roni leaves behind to carry on the love and light she embodied, her parents, Ronnie and Racheal Dean; her sister Danyeal Grays, brother-in-law Corey Grays, and their children Jabori, Kori Danyeal, Rylee, Canaan, Shiloh, Elias, and Mari; niece and nephew Arthur and Shelby Davis; Special Aunt and Godmother, Sonya Dean (Tiernee); Mother-in-law, Marcia Burren, brothers-in-law, LeSean Burren (Jenny) and their children Louren, Darius (Jazmyne), Mya and Sophia Burren; Issac Burren (Deme) and their children Jonathan, Amira, Jackson and Xavier; Special sisters Deshrondra Norris (Tom) and Stephanie Ekpe Hunter (Anthony); the beloved Elements cousin-sisters, Toni Walton (Todd), Brandi Brown (Bert), and Raven Thomas (Leroy) and a host of other aunts, uncles, cousins and in-laws by blood and bond. She is preceded in death by her sister Bernadette McLane and grandparents, Rhoda "Rho-Rho" and Virgie Lee Thompson and Mary "Bamboo" Neal and Willie Dean.
Roni accepted Christ and was baptized at Greater True Faith Baptist Church and attended Pisidia Missionary Baptist Church throughout her younger years. She served faithfully as a member of the Crossroads Community Church. At the time of her passing, she dutifully served under the shepherding of Bishop Clinton Sterling Davis. Roni was born on Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas, on September 21, 1977. Her family moved to Houston when Roni was a toddler. She attended Clear Creek ISD schools, graduating from Clear Brook High School in 1995 before leaving for Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas. While at SMU, Roni was inducted into the Kappa Mu chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. where she bonded with lifelong friends Sherri Daye Scott, Jenise Johnson (Albert), Collette Whitaker (Cornell) and other sorority sisters. Roni received the university's highest honor, the prestigious M Award before graduating from SMU with a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Journalism in 1999. Post-college, Roni was known as "Coach B" to a generation of K-12 students. She spent the bulk of her teaching career at Pearland High School, where she taught English for 11 years and met her co-worker turned friend, Annette Martinez. Roni loved and coached the Pearland High women's track and cross-country teams to 5A-State Championship honors. She continued her studies at the University of Houston (U of H), earning her Master's in Education–Educational Leadership in 2012 and a Doctorate in Philosophy–Curriculum and Instruction in 2017. In recent years, Roni served as a U of H adjunct professor, President of the Texas Council of English Language Arts Teachers, and Director of Gifted and Talented for the Houston Independent School District.
Roni's impact extended well beyond the classroom. She was a fierce advocate for Black women and children and theLGBTQ+ community in Houston and a nationally recognized thought leader, speaker and educator advancing equity, diversity and inclusion. Her work has been featured on CNN, the BBC, NPR, and in the Houston Chronicle, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Miami Herald and the Los Angeles Times. Most notably, Roni, becoming known as the Texas Textbook Mom, is credited for forcing textbook publishing giant McGraw-Hill to correct the text of its high-school AP World Geography book that taught African-Americans came to the
United States as "workers" versus enslaved people. That work resulted in Roni being named to The Root's "2015's Best of #BlackExcellence" list.
However, her most cherished life's work was the family of believers and light-bringers Roni surrounded herself with. Together, she and Lilo built a loving, safe, freeing space for not only Mars' brilliance and Dani's creativity to thrive but also for the gifts of all those they loved to do the same. Thousands mourn her passing. Each with their own personal and authentic connection with Lil Roni/Runky/Auntie Roni/ FayeFaye/Coach B/Roni/ Dr. Roni. A voracious reader, Roni's home, bags, cars, and offices were always full of books; books she was reading, books she planned to give away. Which is why it's fitting then to sum up the life of this phenomenal person, partner, parent, and friend with the words of one of her favorite writers, Toni Morrison, from one of her favorite books, SONG OF SOLOMON
"And she was loved!"