Mechelle Best, Ph.D.
Biography
Mechelle Best, Ph.D. is the Dean of the College of Health and Human Development (HHD) at California State University Northridge. Prior to taking up this position, she was a Professor in- and Chair of the Department of Recreation and Tourism Management, at CSUN.
She holds a doctorate in tourism from the University of Florida, Gainesville, and a Master of Science in Natural Resource Management from the University of the West Indies. In addition to some 20 years in academia, Dr. Best has over 30 years’ experience in management and leadership in the tourism industry in the Caribbean and the United States.
A Fulbright/OAS Scholar for the Eastern Caribbean, Dr. Best conducts research on various aspects of cultural heritage, natural resource use, and sustainability in tourism. Her ongoing research streams focus on the intersection between slavery heritage and tourism in the Caribbean. Dr. Best is co-author of Contemporary Caribbean Tourism: Concepts and Cases (2015) in addition to a range of publications on tourism, sustainability, and cultural heritage. As a lifelong lover of the outdoors, and a supporter of parks and protected areas, she is also interested in how of people of African descent in the United States experience the outdoors.
As Dean for the College of Health and Human Development, Dr. Best is the chief administrator for the College and is responsible for over 300 tenure-track and part-time faculty, and about 60 staff throughout nine departments, nine chartered centers and the Institute for Community Health and Wellbeing. She is particularly focused on inclusive excellence and student success as well promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice to ensure an environment in which all students, faculty, and staff can thrive.
Dr. Best is a member of the CSUN Provost’s Council and the CSU Health and Human Services Deans’ Alliance. In addition to her current administrative role at CSUN, she sits on the Board of Directors for The University Corporation, the California Travel Association, Premier America Credit Union, and several community colleges in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties.
Dean Best was the Keynote Speaker at the 2023 CSUN Black Graduation ceremony. Read and listen to her inspiring and motivating speech, Brilliance: Black, Powerful & Unapologetic.