Willie Pearson Jr. Receives Class of 1934 Distinguished Professor Award
Willie Pearson
Throughout Regents’ Professor Willie Pearson Jr.’s career as an educator, what has made him happiest is giving as many people as possible the opportunity to receive a quality education. He believes his role is not only to share knowledge but also to help people realize their own potential. His career-long legacy of seeing talent in everyone and pushing them to be the best version of themselves is a lesson he first learned at home.
"My mother instilled in me to be kind to everyone and to see the best in people,” he explained.
Pearson and his older sister were raised during the segregated 1960s in the small east Texas city, Tyler. However, his hometown had two historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), underscoring to him the value of educational opportunities. But with football being a large part of Texan tradition, Pearson came of age in a time and place where sports and education collided.
“There is a very macho culture in Texas in general, but particularly in east Texas; it seemed kind of antithetical to be an athlete and then be smart,” explained Pearson. “Fortunately, my high school football, basketball, and track coaches held college degrees in math, science, and social studies.”
Those coaches and several other teachers in the school were among the role models who shaped his career path. Pearson was both athletically and academically inclined. He was an honors student on the football, basketball, and track teams. However, his classmates who excelled at sports were not always, he felt, given the opportunity to pursue higher education. This did not sit well with him.
“The faculty saw some of us had college potential and motivated and encouraged us to go further. But for the others [students], teachers made the best athletes focus on sports — and not excelling in courses,” Pearson said.
The way athletes were often dissuaded from academics inspired him to build a career of making education opportunities available to more people.
“About 98% of students [from my high school] on the non-college prep track did not attend college. I knew that there were classmates who were very capable but were not encouraged to go to college,” Pearson said.
So, he wanted to make change enabling more people to realize their full potential. The social change happening in the late 1960s fueled his passion.
“A lot of activism around the Civil Rights Movement took place at that time. It influenced me to study sociology and economics,” Pearson recalls.
Pearson’s postsecondary education began at Wiley University, depicted in the Denzel Washington film, The Great Debaters. After graduating with a bachelor’s in sociology (with honors), he went on to earn his master’s in sociology from Atlanta University (now, Clark Atlanta University). He then earned his Ph.D. in Sociology of Science from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. After his doctoral studies, he engaged in research at the Educational Testing Service for education policy, and at the Office of Technology Assessment in the U.S. Congress where he researched science and technology policy.
Pearson's Georgia Tech career began in 2001, when he served as professor and chair of the School of History, Technology, and Society (now History and Sociology) until 2006. He then continued his work as a professor of sociology and was appointed Regents’ Professor in 2022. Prior to joining Georgia Tech, Pearson was a faculty member at Wake Forest University from 1980 to 2001, where he held a distinguished appointment as a professor and adjunct in Medical Education at the Bowman Gray School of Medicine (now Wake Forest University School of Medicine). He has also served in the U.S. Army, worked for the Social Security Administration, and in private industry.
As a sociologist of science, Pearson has focused his research on the challenges faced by underrepresented groups in science and engineering disciplines, especially at the doctoral level. His work has explored career paths, workforce development, and human resource concerns, resulting in nine books, 49 articles and book chapters, and numerous national and international presentations.
At Georgia Tech, he has taught courses on the sociology of science and technology, education, sports, family, and medicine. Known for his rigorous yet supportive teaching style, Pearson pushes his students to excel while fostering a deep appreciation for the human experience.
Pearson also believes one of the greatest skills sociologists, engineers, and other STEM-minded students should develop is the ability to effectively communicate orally — and especially through writing. This belief was reinforced by his longtime friend Maya Angelou, the celebrated poet and author, who also taught at Wake Forest.
“You can get a technical job, but you can't go very far if you can’t communicate. You have to write reports to the people above you, no matter what your field happens to be,” he said. “I’ve had graduate students who I kept returning papers to revise, but I found, in the long run, they would thank me because they learned to clearly communicate their ideas.”
Pearson's commitment to mentoring is evident in the success of his students, all of whom have produced verified research papers and presented at national and international scientific meetings. He has also involved undergraduate research assistants in all his funded activities, encouraging them to present their work at various forums.
After several decades in education, Pearson is planning to retire in July. When asked what he will remember most about his time at Tech, he says it is the sharing of his knowledge — especially to first-generation college students or students from rural areas.
“My answer is very solidly the students. I think it’s the diversity of the students and seeing students who are very smart but come from all kinds of class backgrounds,” he said. “Some of my brightest students have come from parts of Georgia that are economically depressed areas.”
Pearson is considered one of the top researchers in his field of sociology of science and science and technology policy. He has often been one of very few — if not the only African American professor — with his level of expertise in the subject. This has fueled his desire to contribute to work that opens doors for underrepresented students.
“What mattered most to me was that I could continue to make a change,” said Pearson. “During my Georgia Tech interview, [then provost] Mike Thomas was honest about the challenges I would face as the first Black school chair. He is the person who convinced me that Georgia Tech was the best place to reach my final goal of improving the lives of students.”
Thomas stayed in touch with Pearson for many years after his retirement from Georgia Tech, and Pearson says his presence had a significant impact on how he spent his time at the Institute.
“Although Provost Thomas is no longer with us, he continues to inspire me because there is no price one can place on educating the next generation of talent,” he said.
Quotes From Colleagues:
“Dr. Pearson is a groundbreaking researcher who has made critical and sustained contributions to the sociological study of scientific careers in STEM and the study of public health. His work has inspired and shaped conversations and policies in higher education, national research agencies, and the White House. As a teacher and mentor, Dr. Pearson is unparalleled, providing students with the tools to achieve scholarly excellence and the opportunities to do work that effects positive change. He is a valued member of our community, and we will miss him.” – Victoria Thompson, Professor and Chair, School of History and Sociology
“Dr. Pearson was the most influential teacher I had at Georgia Tech. His insights and the rigor he expected from me pushed me past a surface-level understanding of social science work —something few of my peers in computing were able to access. The capacity in social sciences that he taught me set me apart from other computing researchers, helping me secure interviews for faculty positions at several top-tier institutions. His involvement went far beyond what a faculty member would normally provide a Ph.D. student from a different College.” – Betsy DiSalvo, Professor, School of Interactive Computing
“Dr. Pearson’s impact is difficult to quantify because it extends beyond conventional academic advising. He embodies what it means to be a true mentor, champion, and leader in higher education. He never sought to impose his own research agenda onto me, nor did he relegate me to a subordinate role within his work. Instead, he prioritized intellectual independence, ensuring that I was well-informed, critically engaged, and equipped with the necessary skills to develop and articulate my own scholarly voice. Dr. Pearson understood the unique potential of each of his students and actively created pathways for us to lead — not just to participate but to establish ourselves as subject matter experts, whether through collaborations with the National Academies, authorship of book chapters and journal articles, or strategic engagement in national and global scholarly networks and STEM initiatives — all experiences I had as his graduate student.” – Sybrina Y. Atwaters, Academic Professional, Office of the Provost
“I would not be a professor if it weren’t for Dr. Pearson. His mentorship, both inside and outside the classroom during my time at Georgia Tech, provided me with the essential guidance needed to navigate the complex path of higher education. Dr. Pearson offered a concrete path toward graduate studies by making me aware of invaluable summer research opportunities. Throughout my graduate school years and now as a professor, he has remained a trusted advisor — a constant source of sage wisdom and encouragement.” – Laurence Ralph, William D. Zabel ’58 Professor of Human Rights, Princeton University