Media Information

The diverse and talented faculty of Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles are experts in many subjects, including education, nursing, biology, social justice, religion, political science, and more.

Reporters and editors who need assistance working with Mount faculty or need more information about the college can contact any member of the Public Relations Department listed below.

Photographers who want access to one of the college's two campuses (Chalon in the hills above Brentwood or Doheny near downtown LA) should also contact department staff in advance to make arrangements.

Staff Contacts

Debbie Ream
Director, Public Relations
Phone: 213.477.2505                                                                                                           
Cell: 310.709.1898
Email: dream@msmc.la.edu

Debbie Ream joined Mount St. Mary’s College in 2009. She previously served as director of public affairs for the Los Angeles Times. She also held positions with the Times Mirror Company as vice president for the Times Mirror Foundation and corporate affairs manager. Earlier in her career, Ream held positions as public information officer for the city of Victorville and Sedgwick County, and as a reporter and editor for weekly newspapers in Arizona. Ream earned her bachelor’s of arts degree in journalism from Western Washington University.

Pia Abelgas Orense
Assistant Director, Public Relations
Phone: 213.477.2504
Cell: 310.709.0962
Email: porense@msmc.la.edu

Pia Orense joined the public relations department of Mount St. Mary’s College in 2011. She was previously the custom publications editor of the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group, where she edited the group’s weekly newspapers and bimonthly Rose Magazine and managed the production of special sections. She has served as a  community news reporter, copy editor and page designer. She majored in communications, with an emphasis on print journalism, at Pasadena City College and Cal State Fullerton.

Joanna Banks
Manager, Public Relations
Phone: 213.477.2506
Email: jbanks@msmc.la.edu

Joanna Banks joined the staff of Mount St. Mary's College in 2002. Previously, she served as a metro reporter for newspapers in New York and California, including Los Angeles Times community newspapers and The Press-Enterprise of Inland Southern California, where she covered education, demographics, and social issues. Banks earned her bachelor's degree in communication studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and her master's degree in print journalism from Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

Public Relations Fax: 213.477.2544