Dr. Jessyca Perez has taught psychology and student life skills at Miami Dade College since 2006. In 2017 she was named to the Calvin & Flavia Oak Foundation Endowed Teaching Chair — the college's distinguished-professor honor — and in 2025 she completed her Doctorate in Higher Education at Barry University.
Her teaching reaches across psychology and human development, and she has served as a college-wide course developer for MDC Online. But her impact extends well beyond the syllabus. A champion for mental-health advocacy, she founded NAMI on Campus at MDC Homestead and West to make mental-health support visible to students. And as an expert guest on MDC-TV's Wellness Mindset, she discusses trends and research on burnout, anxiety, and the link between productivity and self-worth — and how to address those for a better life.
Her doctoral research focuses on reproductive-health access for community-college students, and she is an AASECT educator advancing honest, judgment-free health education. Earlier, she co-founded Pages for All Ages, a service-learning literacy program for the children of migrant farmworkers that was recognized as a White House Bright Spot in Hispanic Education.
A bilingual (English/Spanish) Miami native, Dr. Perez has written grants ranging from $10,000 to a $2.1 million National Science Foundation award, and has been featured by the Miami Herald, CNN, and Diverse Education.