Lakeland provides students many opportunities to excel in their academics, athletics and vocational aspirations. Bailey Pearson is a prime example of this.
Pearson is a junior majoring in business administration with an emphasis in graphic design and human resource management. She is from Niagara, Wis. where she played volleyball for Niagara High School. Pearson plays for the Lakeland volleyball team as an outside hitter/middle blocker. Along with being a student athlete, she is also a Resident Assistant.
In high school, Pearson flexed her athletic talent by participating in track and field, volleyball, basketball and softball. She was captain of both the volleyball and basketball teams in her senior year. She was also named Most Valuable Player of the volleyball team. She then committed to Lakeland and became a Muskie because of the personalized learning environment.
Pearson joined the Lakeland volleyball team as a freshman and has been a part of the team ever since. During her freshman year, she played two sets in one match and received the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Scholar-Athlete Award. When asked about her favorite part of being on the volleyball team, she responded with many rewarding reasons. She explained that practice serves as an escape from academics. Along with that, she said that she enjoys having a group of people with similar interests that push her to be better every day.
Playing sports at a collegiate level can be challenging, however. The most difficult part of it for Pearson is being away from her family for the majority of the fall semester. To those considering joining the volleyball team, Pearson says, “Just like Lakeland as a whole, our team is big on having a positive and caring culture. You have to be willing to foster the culture and put in the work.”
Pearson was also hired as a Resident Assistant and spent her first semester as an RA in the fall of 2024. Being an RA takes a lot of time and effort, as does being on a sports team. To be able to be a student, an athlete and an RA, Pearson makes sure to organize her time well and find time to relax to avoid burning out. While she finds it difficult to see people she cares about face challenges in their lives, Pearson also finds being an RA very fulfilling and sees her connections with both her residents and her coworkers lasting beyond just her time at Lakeland.
Not only has Lakeland brought Pearson the opportunities to build skills by being an athlete and an RA, but it also allowed her to utilize the Cooperative Education program. With help from Professor Bob Martin, Pearson sought connections with local businesses and interns under an accounting firm.
Pearson is involved in many things on campus, but her inspiration stems from her father.
She discussed how her father taught her to be the best version of herself and how important it is to help the people you care for; therefore, she found a way to help her peers on campus. The advice Pearson would like to give is to remember every day is a gift, don’t take education for granted and that college is the time to try and learn as many new things as possible. Thanks to Lakeland’s flexibility, Pearson and many other students can be involved in more activities than they otherwise would have at less flexible schools.
