Pat O’Brien, 26-Year Faculty Member and Interim Dean, Passes Away
Patrick O’Brien — a long-time faculty member, active retiree, and chronicler of the campus — passed away on October 29, 2025. O’Brien was known for his affable nature and kindness during his 26 years as an English instructor.
“He was a fabulous career educator and an important part of Cypress College,” said retiree Donna Friess, who was a close colleague of O’Brien’s. “He was a great person.”
O’Brien joined the faculty in 1971 and was here as the permanent buildings were built. He retired from his faculty role in 1997. He temporarily left retirement for two stints as an interim dean, and was a member of multiple anniversary-celebration committees. Back in retirement, O’Brien created The Cypress Connection, a newsletter intended to keep retirees connected.
The newsletter was just the tip of his written work. O’Brien was an author across multiple genres — writing fiction, academic textbooks, children’s stories, and composing lyrics for the Herb Alpert Group.
O’Brien was a supporter of, and contributor to, the Cypress College Foundation — which included a memorial scholarship offered to health science students in his sister’s name.
President Emeritus Margie Lewis remembered O’Brien as “as an outstanding teacher and leader who made a significant contribution to the success of Cypress College.”
“Pat was a kind and gentle man, with a warm smile and a wonderful sense of humor,” she said. “I got to know him when he served for a semester as interim dean of the Language Arts Division, and he was a joy to work with. He was calm and wise with both colleagues and students, never appearing rushed or worried.”
Eldon Young, who succeeded O’Brien as Language Arts dean, recalled O’Brien’s “humorous outlook on life and … being a friendly, supportive colleague.”
Both Young and Friess recalled O’Brien regularly writing poems, especially for milestones such as retirements. One such occasion was for the college’s 50th anniversary celebration; O’Brien wrote the official poem, which was recited at both the re-dedication event to open the anniversary and the community celebration to close it out. The closing stanza of O’Brien’s poem touches on legacy:
And on this day, we touch our treasured past
Learners all — students, teachers, coaches, peers—
A Cypress spirit will forever last,
Ours the testimony of its growing years.
“We called him poet laureate,” said Friess, who also lived nearby the O’Briens. “He was kind. Humorous. And smart. He was primarily a family man.”
“Friendship isn’t one thing; it’s a million things,” she said.
