Granado to Lead CSULB JPR Bateman Team’s Campaign to Conquer ChildhoodCancer

CSULB JPR students, led by Bianca Granado will help in raising awareness and funding for childhood cancer for client With Purpose.

Bianca Granado, team leader for CSULB's 2018 Bateman team. | Photo by Jonathan Garza

by Jonathan Garza

Bianca Granado is ready to lead a team of five California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) public relations students in a fight against childhood cancer as part of the Bateman Case Study Competition.

Granado, 22, was named the team leader for CSULB’s 2018 Bateman Team, and is expected to graduate in May 2018. She is from Whittier, Calif., and is a transfer student from Fullerton College, majoring in journalism with an emphasis in public relations.

She learned of the competition through a presentation given by the team’s Co-Coach and CSULB Professor of Journalism and Public Relations (JPR), Jennifer Newton. That presentation had some statistics that really stood out to Granado. But one in particular made her want to take action: 40 children are diagnosed with cancer every single day.

“I think, oh my God, when I’m at church, I help 40 kids. And I imagine all of them being diagnosed with cancer, and it breaks my heart,” Granado said.

Granado attends Calvary Chapel in Santa Fe Springs. With her involvement there, she has been on numerous mission trips, spending the past summer in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, working with children.

Granado feels that she is a good fit to be the leader of CSULB JPR’s Bateman team, saying that she hopes “to bring together a team that is united,” and understands that she must lead by example. “I plan to bring my A-game and to get everybody else to bring their A-game,” Granado said.

Helping Granado’s effort to build a united and competitive team is Diana Martinez, who was named Creative Director of the Bateman team. The duo just completed their group project presentation for JOUR 471  -- a public relations campaign proposal for CSULB’s Center for Scholarship Information.
Granado hopes her successful working relationship with Martinez will extend over to her three other teammates as well. She strives to be an effective leader with an open-door policy. “It’s an honor and a privilege to lead the team. I want them to know that if there are any issues going on, they can come talk to me,” she said.

The team has quite the reputation of placing in the top three or honorable mention in 15 of the past 22 years it has entered. However, the school has yet to win first place. Granado is aware of this, to which she says, “I want to bring home the title.”

Work on the campaign for client With Purpose is already underway. The research and planning portion will go on from now until February. Implementation of the campaign will happen February 15 - March 15, 2018. Final entries are due to the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) headquarters in April. Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) members will select the top three campaigns and fly them out in May to present them in person.

From now until May, Granado knows that the challenge will be a tough one. Some words of encouragement that she offers to herself when the going gets tough along the way is to, “stick it out! Get it! Get it done!”

Granado is excited to get to work, sending a message to her team with, “Good luck. Let’s work hard. Don’t give up. We’ve got this.”

Filling out the team is Media Relations Manager Kevin Olivares, Head Writer and Content Creator Hetty La and Research Analyst and Assistant Writer Christian Barel.