MaryAnn Pearson, Ed.D., APR

With a distinguished career spanning three decades, Dr. Mary Ann Pearson brings deep expertise in leadership, communication, and education. She holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and has dedicated 19 years to teaching Communication Arts at CBU. Her research focuses on critical areas like mentoring, shared leadership, and psychological safety, resilience training and mentoring, employing qualitative methods to understand and enhance these dynamics in diverse settings. As a Kienel Leadership Institute fellow, she is committed to fostering servant and transformational leadership, and empowering individuals to overcome adversity through emotional intelligence and resilience frameworks.

Multiple Subject Teaching Credential
Administrative Services Credential
Communications Courses, Public Relations and Journalism
Reading Specialist Certificate
College Media Advisers Certification for Adviser Training Student Publications
APR Accreditation through PRSA

Leadership Ph.D. Courses
Advanced Qualitative Research
Culture and Sociology of Organization
Communications Master’s and Bachelor’s courses
Public Relations Master’s and Bachelor’s courses
Journalism Courses
Education Courses

COM 113 Public Speaking COM 300 Public Relations
COM 308 Interpersonal Communication COM 333 Oral Interpretation
COM 425 Organizational Communication
COM 505 Communication Theory and Application COM 510 Communication Research and Evaluation COM 520 Strategic Leadership and Management
COM 530 Rhetorical Criticism and Contemporary Culture COM 560 Communication Ethics
COM 565 Communication Project EDU 302 Growth and Development
HON 150 Special Topics- Media
JRN 170 Introduction to Journalism JRN 215 Newspaper Production JRN 212 Yearbook Production
JRN 412 Advanced Yearbook Production JRN 253 Newspaper Editing and Design
JRN 320 Ethics in Public Relations and Journalism
JRN 349 Copy Editing for newspapers, magazines, and presentations JRN 420 Public Relations Campaigns, Strategies, and Writings
JRN 371 Applied Journalism Production (writing for the web and convergent media)
LDR 350 Communication Principles for Leadership
PRL 205 Historical and Theoretical Foundations of Public Relations PRL 310 Public Relations Issues and Crisis Management
PRL 320 Business Literacy for Public Relations Professionals PRL 430 Principles of International Public Relations
PRL 510 Public Relations Research and Evaluation
PRL 515 Legal, Ethical and Social Foundations of Public Relations PRL 520 Specialized Writing in Public Relations
PRL 580 International Public Relations RDG 535 Reading Diagnosis
EDU 515 Reading Across the Content Areas
PRL 570 Strategic Marketing and Communication Programs PRL 595 Public Relations Capstone Project
LDR 700 Rhetoric and Communication
LDR 702 Theories and Foundations of Leadership Studies
LDR 745 Advanced Qualitative Research
LDR 730 Culture and Sociology of Organizations

Dignity in Leadership
Leadership Presence
Shared Leadership
Generative Dialogue
Effective Communication with Millennials and Generation Z
Psychological Safety
Mentoring
Building a Mentoring Culture
Burn out
Ethics in Communication
Work-Life Balance
Boosting Accreditation in Public Relations
Literacy and English Proficiency
Shared Leadership
Adversity Management
Conflict Resolution
Mentoring Circles and Building a Culture of Mentoring
Sponsorship
Servant and Transformational Leadership
Transformational Leadership Teams

Numerous Leadership, public relations and journalism training sessions and workshops through PRSA, CAPIO and community organizations
Fontana Christian School
Colton Joint Unified School District (Cooley Ranch Elementary School)
Tutoring at Innovative Intellects
Teaches Communication, Public Relations, Journalism, English courses online, hybrid and on-ground
Associated Collegiate Press
College Media Advisers
Public Relations Society of America
California Public Information Officials

Doctoral Dissertation Dissertations:

Harris, T. (2018). Employee Engagement: The Path to Understanding Public Sector Millennials

Vandiver, L. (2020). Expressing a Political Agenda through Social Media: A Content Analysis of Representative Pete Aguilar’s #DearPete Social Media Campaign

Board, Afarah: "The Phenomenon of Blacks or African Americans Emerging Out of Poverty into Prominent Leadership Positions" October, 2022, Completed, Chair

Katie Grimble: Critical Race Theory Professional Development and K-12 Principal Decision Making, June 2022, Completed, Chair

Dennis McIver: Lift Every Voice: Examining the Development of Black Employee Resource Group Leaders at R1 Designated Universities, Chair

Waahida Mansion: A Phenomenological Study of Black Women Transitioning From K-12 Classroom Roles to K-12 Leadership Roles. Chair

Sega, Taylor: “To Apologize or Not to Apologize… What Else is in Between? A Case Study Analysis with Implications for Leaders & Organizational Context October, 2022, Completed, Chair

Dennis McIver: Lift Every Voice: Examining the Development of Black Employee Resource Group Leaders at R1 Designated Universities, Chair

Carrie Tate-Meyer: Leading with Kindness: The impact prosocial leadership has on employee engagement, and prevent job burnout, Chair

Waahida Mansion: A Phenomenological Study of Black Women Transitioning From K-12 Classroom Roles to K-12 Leadership Roles. Chair

Kent Noyes: External Pressures on Ethical Decision Making for Athletic Leaders, Chair
(Many in progress)

Pearson, M., International Leadership Association Virtual Conference, Inspiring Wisdom through Mentoring, Oct., 2023

Pearson, M., Panel on Networking, Capio Leadership Conference, Sept. 2023


O' Rourke, M., Pearson, M. and Vanderslice, G., Rethinking Leadership Strategies to Improve Communication, Capio webinar, July, 2023

Brodie, V., Pearson, M, Emotional Quotient: Resolve, Grit, andnConscientiousness, San Jacinto Yard workers training, June, 2023

Brodie, V., Pearson, M, Emotional Quotient: Resolve, Grit, andConscientiousness, San Bernardino Probation meeting, June, 2023


O' Rourke, M., Pearson, M. and Vanderslice, G., Mentoring Workshop, Sound Transit, May, 2023

Pearson, M. Vanderslice, G., O'Rourke, M. Increase Leadership Capacity: Improve Communication With Mentoring Communities and the Honeycomb Leadership Development Model.Public Relations Society of America national webinar, July 2022

Pearson, M., Vanderslice, G., O'Rourke, M. Rethinking Strategies that Increase Leadership Capacity and Communication, Public Relations Society of America, Western District, April 2022

Pearson, M. Inspiring Wisdom through Mentoring and Leadership in a Student Publication Team Setting., International Leadership Association, October, 2022

Pearson, M., Adversity Quotient and Mentoring while Leading Student Teams, International Leadership Association, October 2021

Pearson, M. Mentoring in a Hybrid, Pandemic Environment with an Understanding of the Adversity Quotient, Peer-Reviewed publication and conference, October, 2021

O' Rourke, M., Pearson, M. and Vanderslice, G., Strategies for Challenging Communication and Instruction, PRSA National webinar, August, 2021

Pearson, M. Boot Camp, Ethics in PR presented for PRSA National, May, 2021

Brodie, V., Pearson, M. Emotional Intelligence and Adversity Quotient. Rancho Cucamonga, Ca. April, 2021

Brodie, V., Pearson, M. Emotional Intelligence and Adversity Quotient. Rancho Cucamonga, Ca. April, 2021

Pearson, M., "Applying Ethics and Law to the Field of Public Relations, Orange County Public Relations Society of America, March 2021

Pearson M., "Holistic Mentoring and Coaching for Advancement and Innovative Leadership" International Leadership Conference, October, 2020

Pearson, M., "Adversity Quotient and Mentoring While Leading Student Teams" International Mentoring Conference and Peer-Reviewed Publication, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, October, 2020

Pearson, M., "Podcasting on a Shoestring Budget" Webinar, Public Relations Society of America, June, 2020

Pearson, M., Brodie, V. Ethics, Communication for Impact,
Presentation, City of Moreno Valley, March, 2020

Brodie, V., Pearson, M. (2020) Communicating for Impact. City of San Jacinto. San Jacinto, CA, July 22.

Pearson, M. (2020) How to Create a Podcast on a Shoestring Budget. Online Webinar, Riverside, Ca. June 17.

Brodie, V., Pearson, M. (2020) Ethics and Communication Leadership. California Association of Public Information Officers (CAPIO). March 7.

Pearson, M. (2020) Advantages of Mentoring. Online Webinar, Capio, January 19.

Pearson, M. (2019) Mentoring and Empowering Students. International Webinar, Public Relations Society of America, September, 2019

Brodie, V., Pearson, M. (2019) Emotional Intelligence and Adversity Quotient. City of Moreno Valley, Moreno Valley, CA, November 12.

Pearson, M.(2019) Exploring mentoring Communities in Online Graduate Programs" UNM International Mentoring Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, October

Pearson, M.(2018) “Method for Teaching Business Literacy to Public Relations Students” Public Relations Society of America Educator’s Academy, University of Texas, Austin, October

Purper, Ca. Ahumada, E. Pearson, M., Browning, J., (2018) “Work Patterns. Gender and job Satisfaction for Online Professors” Advancing Women in Leadership Conference, Azusa Pacific University, March
Pearson, M.(2018) ”Mentoring Model for Career Advancement” Advancing Women in Leadership Conference, Azusa Pacific University, March
Pearson, M.(2018) “Personal Branding Projects” Hawaii International Conference on Educations
Pearson, M.(2017) “Establishing a Mentoring Culture to help Diverse, Millennial First Generation Graduates Achieve Success” International Mentoring Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, October
Pearson, M. (2017) “Teaching Public Relations Students to succeed by Writing Letters and Notes” PRSA International Conference, Boston, MA. October
Pearson, M.. (2017) “Millennials in the Workplace” California Public Information Officials Conference, San Diego, Ca. April
Pearson, M. (2017) “Building Networking and Public Relations Skills” PRSSA Meeting, Cal State San Bernardino, April
Pearson, M.(2017) Leadership Panel, PRSA Western District Conference, Riverside, Ca. March
Pearson, M.(2016) "Natural, Holistic Mentoring" Peer-Reviewed Conference submission, International Mentoring Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, October
Pearson, M.(2016) “Personal Branding for Success after Commencement” Cal Lutheran, Thousand Oaks, Ca. PRSSA Meeting, November
Pearson, M. (2016) “Tips for a Successful Interview” Colton Joint Unified School District, Career Day, October
Pearson, M. Pearson, M. “Textbook Chapter review in 8/2016 for Public Relations Writing and Media Techniques, 8th Edition, by Wilcox & Reber completed by Mary Ann Pearson
Pearson, M. “Career Day Assembly Presentation” Colton Joint Unified School District, D’Arcy Elementary School, March, 2016
Pearson, M. “Panel for Lean In by Cheryl Sanberg” Colton Joint Unified School District, Superintendent Jerry Almendarez’s Book Club, February, 2016
Pearson, M. "Strategies for Success after Commencement" Cal State San Bernardino PRSSA, Nov. 2015
Pearson, M. "Online Mentoring to Facilitate Internship- Peer Reviewed Conference Publication, Research Results "Public Relations Society of America Educators Academy Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, Nov. 2015.
Pearson, M. "Journey to Success" Panel Participant, La Verne Leo Public Relations Club, Nov., 2015
Pearson, M., "Best Practices for Mentoring Student Interns Online" Peer-Reviewed Conference submission, International Mentoring Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, October, 2015
Pearson, M. "Strategies for Success after Commencement" CBU PRSSA Chapter, October, 2015
Pearson, M. “Building Effective Community Relations,” Community Connect Workshop at the Grove Church, Ca., September, 2015
Pearson, M. "Research, Planning, Implementation and Evaluation for Success after Commencement" COMM WEEK, Cal State Fullerton, April, 2015
Pearson, M. "Research, Planning, Implementation and Evaluation for Success after Commencement" University of La Verne Leo Public Relations Club, April, 2015
Pearson, M. "Seven Tips for Success after Commencement", Cal State San Bernardino, February, 2015
Pearson, M. "Turning that Internship into a Job", PRSSA YOPRO Conference, Riverside, Ca. February, 2015
Pearson, M. (2014) Online Mentoring for Internships, International Mentoring Association Publication for Albuquerque, New Mexico Conference Pearson, M. “Build a Personal Brand” Riverside County fiscal and administrative managers, October, 2014
Pearson, M. “Social Media for Nonprofits” Community Connect at the Grove Church, Riverside, Ca. September, 2014
Pearson, M. and Hernandez, P. “Internship Program Year Two” Riverside Downtown Partnership, September, 2014
Pearson, M. “Nonprofit Use of Pinterest” United Way, Riverside, Ca. February, 2014
Pearson, M., "Mentoring Millennial Students", International Mentoring Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, October, 2013
Hernandez, P. and Pearson, M. "Social Media Practices", Downtown Riverside Foundation, October, 2013
Ahumada, E. and Pearson, M. “Public Service, Personal Branding and Motivation,” Office of Aging, Riverside County, California December, 2013

Centerpoint Church Colton

Leadership Quotient at the County of San Bernardino probation training session on March 3
Girl Scouts of America, Troop 960
Grab That Job Online Seminar and Workshop, Centerpoint Church, Colton, March-May 2020
Mentoring Program for CBU Public Relations students to study and successfully pass the exam for Principles of Public Relations Certification
Fellow Dr. Paul & Annie Kienel Leadership Institute, California Baptist University
President of PRSA IE in 2015 and Board Member 2013-2021
Hispanic Family Literacy Program
Colton Joint Unified School District’s Superintendent’s Council
Creative Writing Courses
Tutoring-Community Based Tutoring Firm
Volunteer- Give Big Riverside County
Volunteer- Girl Scouts of America
Volunteer- International Mentoring Association
Board Member Educators Academy PRSA 2017- 2022
Assembly Delegate PRSA 2019
Director PRSSA for PRSA Inland Empire Chapter
Judge for Bronze Anvil Award 2017-2022
Judge for Capio Awards 2017-2020
Western District Chapter of PRSA Communications Co-Chair 2021=2022

Family and Cycling

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

- James 1:12, NASB