KATHLEEN PRESTON

Executive Administrator, CCDA
Professor of Psychology, California State University Fullerton
Associate Director, Fullerton Longitudinal Study
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Kathleen Preston, Ph.D., has been CCDA’s Executive Administrator since July 2016. She earned her doctoral degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in Measurement and Quantitative Methodology, a Master of Arts degree from UCLA in Psychology, an additional Master of Arts degree from California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) in Psychological Research, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from CSUF with a double major in Psychology and Music with a Vocal Emphasis. During her time at CSUF she served as alto section leader under the direction of John Alexander.  

Dr. Preston is a Professor of Psychology at CSUF, where she teaches courses in Introductory- and Graduate-level quantitative methodology, measurement theory, latent variable modeling, and advanced computer applications. She earned her Ph.D. in 2011 in quantitative psychology from UCLA.  Her research interests are in utilizing Item Response Theory, specifically the nominal response model, to develop and refine psychological measurement tools.  Dr. Preston is co-director of the Fullerton Longitudinal Study where she applies advanced statistical techniques to long-term longitudinal data.  Dr. Preston is considered an expert in statistical analysis using R programming and she has recently published a textbook on analyzing multivariate statistics using R. She has given numerous invited statistical presentations and workshops at national and regional conferences, universities, and federal government agencies. She has served as an administrator for the Long Beach Camerata Singers, and Vox Femina.  Dr. Preston has developed and maintained patron and membership databases for two non-profit community choruses, chaired fundraising efforts for the CSUF School of Music, served on committees at her church, published numerous articles in professional journals, and has presented symposia and invited lectures at regional, national, and international professional conferences, as well as an invited speaker for the annual health summit featuring government agencies including the FDA, and CDC. Just as importantly, Dr. Preston has been a member in the alto section of Pacific Chorale for over a decade. Dr. Preston resides in Brea with her professional tenor husband, Nicholas Preston, and brilliant daughter, Zelda