Ferial Pearson | SpeakerHub

Personal Details

Current position (1)

TEDx Speaker, Author, Educator, Comedienne

JEDI Trainer, Founder of The Secret Kindness Agents Project

Achievements (1)

Doctorate in Educational Leadership (ED.D)

Degrees (3)

Ed.D

University of Nebraska at Omaha

2014 to 2017

Master's in Curriculum and Instruction with Certificate in Urban Instruction

University of Nebraska at Omaha

2006 to 2019

Bachelor's in Communication Arts Literature Teaching

Gustavus Adolphus College

1997 to 2001

Bio

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Bio #1

Dr. Pearson - aka Mama Beast - is a mother, activist, author, educator, speaker, poet, comedienne, cook, sourdough artist, and citizen of the world. She founded the Secret Kindness Agents Project and is an Assistant Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. She has been teaching humans of all ages for 20 years in the Omaha area. As a Kenyan Indian Muslim immigrant queer disabled woman of color, she is passionate about working towards Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Kindness. She has received national and local awards for her work in education and social justice, has authored two books, and has been featured as a speaker on the TEDx Omaha stage. Her Secret Kindness Agents Project has been featured at Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation, Hallmark, Parents Magazine, Learning for Justice website and magazine, Midwest Living Magazine, and more. Her goal is to make sure you know that you are loved and that you are enough just the way you are. She lives in Omaha with her spouse, two teenagers, and two guinea pigs.

Awards

Finalist - INDIE Book Award for best book published in the Education category, Secret Kindness Agents: An Educator’s Guide, 2021

Recipient - Education Solutions Exchange Awardee: Secret Kindness Agents Project, ($1000) 2021

Recipient - COVID Data Hero Award from the Data Access, Transparency and Advocacy (DATA) Group which “rewards those whose commitment to our core values improved the lives of those in their respective communities,” 2021

Recipient – Community Leadership “Build Up Omaha” Award from Civic Nebraska, 2019

Recipient – International Woman of the Year Award from Omaha International Women’s Day Committee and Refugee Women’s Organization of Nebraska, 2019

Recipient - 18 Alumni Living Their Purpose in the last 50 Years, Gustavus Adolphus College, 2019

Recipient - Outstanding Citizen Award, Senator Carol Blood, Nebraska State Legislature, 2018

Recipient – African Service Award from the African Leadership Summit, 2018

Recipient – Best Poster Presentation from Global Conference on Education and Research, 2018

Recipient – Kennedy Center Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Award, 2016

Recipient – Leading Excellence Scholar Award (University of Nebraska at Omaha College of Education), 2015

Recipient – Ten Outstanding Young Omahans (TOYO) Award (Omaha Jaycees), 2014

Recipient – Distinguished Alumni Promising Professional Award from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, 2012

Nebraska Nominee and finalist for NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) Academic Freedom Award, 2011

Recipient - RESPECT Anti-Bullying Award from R.E.S.P.E.C.T.2, 2011

Recipient - OEA (Omaha Education Association) Human Relations Award, 2011

Recipient – NEA (National Education Association) Virginia Uribe Award for Creative Leadership in Human Rights, 2011

Recipient - GLSEN National Educator of the Year RESPECT Award 2010

SKA Project

National and Global Recognition of the Secret Kindness Agents Project

The Secret Kindness Agents: An Educator’s Guide: INDIE Book Award Finalist for best book

published in the Education category (2021)

Recipient - Education Solutions Exchange Awardee: Secret Kindness Agents Project, 2021

Parents Magazine, 2021 (Interviewed as expert for article and featured expert for Webinar)

Parents Magazine, 2021 (Interviewed for spotlight article)

Midwest Living, 2021 (Interviewed for one-page spotlight article)

CultureFeed, 2019 (Spotlight on Secret Kindness Agents Project) The website is a project of the

Advanced Studies in Culture Foundation, a foundation that supports the work of a post-doctoral institute at UVA.

Hallmark, 2017 (Short documentary spotlight on the project at Skinner Magnet Elementary

School, Omaha, NE)

Learning for Justice Magazine, 2017 (2-page article on the project at Patrick Henry High School,

San Diego, CA) *The magazine was previously known as Teaching Tolerance

Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation, 2017 (Implementation of the project and spotlight essay on their website)

Presentations

Presentations (2)

The Secret Kindness Agents

This inspirational talk tells the origin story of original Secret Kindness Agents created the Project, the journey of where the Project has been, hear what the research says about kindness education and its effects on students, educators, and their contexts, and learn how they can become Agents themselves.

The Power of Story and the Danger of Absence

This session uses Dr. Pearson’s powerful storytelling as a vehicle for learning the importance of representation in learning empathy and broadening perspectives and how the absence of such representation leads to bigotry and discrimination. Dr. Pearson speaks about her experiences post 9/11 as well as more recently and explains why it is not only important to tell our stories, but also why we should listen to the stories of people who are different from us.

Workshops (12)

Story Circle

1 hour

Restorative Practice

90 minutes

Microaggressions Awareness Program

90 minutes

Participants learn the reasons behind why addressing microaggressions is important, how to define and recognize microaggressions, and four MicroResistance strategies they can use to cope with, respond to, and/or challenge microaggressions when they happen to them or others.

Identity, Power, Privilege, & Intersectionality

2 hours

Intercultural Dialogue: Engaging with Empathy & Kindness

1 hour

Participants learn the definitions of Intercultural Dialogue, Social Justice, Kindness, and Empathy and how these concepts work together in moving towards an equitable and inclusive community/workplace.

Where do I start? Establishing Classroom Norms and Expectations for Difficult Conversations

1 hour

Difficult dialogues require advance preparation to be successful. In this session, we focus on cultivating a safe and inclusive classroom climate by establishing norms, setting expectations, and preparing students to learn from diverse perspectives. We also discuss techniques for keeping conversations on track.

Trauma Informed Education

1 hour

Participants will learn how to understand the impact of trauma on students and create a list of strategies to use when working with students who have experienced trauma. Participants will also learn how to mitigate secondary trauma in themselves by creating a self-care action plan.

Creating a Multicultural Classroom, Home, Office, or School Library

1 hour

Participants will learn how to identify and select authentic and powerful multicultural literature for children and youth in order to build a balanced and diverse collection of picture books and novels for their classroom, home, office, or school.

Culturally Responsive Teaching

1 hour

Participants will learn what Culturally Responsive Teaching is based on the leading scholars in the field, why it is important, and how to immediately apply it in their own practice.

Impostor Syndrome

1 hour

In this engaging and interactive session, participants will learn how to recognize Impostor Syndrome in themselves and how to use strategies to combat it in their professional and/or academic contexts.

Supporting Students and Mentees who have Impostor Syndrome

1 hour

In this workshop, participants will learn how to recognize Impostor Syndrome in themselves and others, and which strategies to use to support students and/or mentees in overcoming it.

Supporting Queer and Trans Students

1 hour

Students cannot learn if they do not feel safe, respected, and accepted in all parts of their identities. Participants will learn the current basic terminology, statistics and legislation surrounding the rights and experiences of queer and trans students, and practical strategies they can implement right away to ensure that their queer and trans students thrive in their care.

Past talks (2)

Bits at the Backline: Ferial Pearson

The Backline, Omaha, NE

October 17, 2021

The Secret Kindness Agents

The Secret KIndness Agents

TEDx Omaha

November 17, 2014