Warren, 36, died on Sunday at Brookwood Medical Center in Birmingham. Funeral services are scheduled for today at 2 p.m. at Collins-Burke Funeral Home.
Warren taught math, language and reading since starting at Townley in 2005. She was diagnosed with adrenal carcinoma, a form of cancer, in February 2006.
Principal Karen Atkins said Warren never let her condition interfere with her commitment to her students.
"She came to work up until the day she was placed in the hospital," Atkins said.
Warren was admitted to the hospital on Aug. 25. She was not feeling well that day and told Atkins that she thought she had bronchitis.
At Brookwood, Warren was diagnosed with pneumonia, a complication of the cancer spreading to her lungs.
She made progress several times during her 10-day hospital stay, giving her friends and family hope that she would live to fight on. Atkins said Warren never allowed herself to believe that her life was about to end.
"She was really a warrior, the epitome of strength and perseverance. She was fighting this cancer every day with every fiber and cell in her body," Atkins said.
Warren leaves behind two sons, 14-year-old Braxton and 10-year-old Brayden. Atkins said her sons and her students were her inspiration.
Counselors were available for Townley students this week to help them deal with their grief. Atkins said the students have shared Warren's pain as they watched her struggle with cancer for the past four years.
"None of them wanted her to lose to this terrible disease, but they didn't want her to suffer either," Atkins said.