Dr. Zhan Li has been appointed the Dean of the School of Economics and Business Administration at Saint Mary's College of California. His appointment began July 1, 2010.

Dr. Li was formally the University of San Francisco (USF) Associate Dean for Graduate Programs, Faculty and Research in the School of Business and Management. He also served as the school’s Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and has been a faculty member at USF for the past 16 years.

As Associate Dean, Li oversaw the design and implementation of new and innovative degree programs, led efforts to increase MBA enrollments and revenues and initiated programs to enhance undergraduate student retention and advising.

Li also developed and executed accreditation initiatives related to criteria required by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), such as assessment and faculty academic and professional qualification standards, succeeded in faculty recruitment and in enhancing faculty research productivity and guided the redesign of joint degree programs with other colleges and universities.

He is committed to community service initiatives in academic business curricula. As a Professor of Marketing and International Business, he sought to expose students to a diversity of perspectives, experiences and multicultural traditions — components he considers essential to business education in a global context.

His academic experience includes teaching assignments at prestigious universities, both nationally and internationally, including the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley and Peking University in China.

Li has also published extensively. His work has appeared in premier publications such as the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Business Research, Industrial Marketing Management and the Journal of Marketing Channels. He also served as a reviewer for the Journal of Marketing, Journal of Retailing and the International Marketing Review, among others.

Li earned both his Doctorate of Business Administration and Master of Business Administration degrees from Boston University and a Bachelor of Science degree from the Harbin Institute of Technology in China.