Dr. Oscar W. DeShields, Jr.
Professor of Marketing
David Nazarian College of Business and Economics

The Department of Marketing is sad to announce the passing of Dr. Oscar DeShields, Jr. on Sunday, April 27, 2014. Dr. DeShields was a member of our marketing family. For over 20 years, he has been dedicated to teaching CSUN students in undergraduate and graduate-level marketing courses. He has also served the department and college at different administrative levels, working to improve curriculum and student learning. Dr. DeShields came to CSUN in 1992 after a wealth of practitioner and academic experience. He received his Ph.D. from Florida International University, a Masters degree in Management from MIT, and a Bachelors degree in Chemistry from Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. DeShields embraced new technology and innovative marketing techniques, fighting to create the Internet Marketing class almost a decade ago.

"I think the biggest change to marketing has been the impact of the Internet on the discipline. As a professor of marketing, I tried to address that change by developing and introducing a course on Internet marketing in the marketing course curriculum."

He has long acknowledged that students at CSUN work hard to improve their personal and professional lives. He was especially motivated and engaged in his efforts with the Ph.D. Project to mentor and foster opportunities for minorities to enter the marketing discipline and to ultimately create a more diverse corporate America.

Dr. DeShields was recently honored at the 2013 Marketing Doctoral Student Association (MDSA), where he said,

"Being recognized as the honored guest at the MDSA has been a significant and humbling experience for me."

His dedication and commitment to others led him to serve as Vice President and then Treasurer for the Marketing Ethnic Faculty Association.

Oscar DeShields was a force to be reckoned with and will be missed by his family, colleagues, friends, and students. He was a vibrant, proud, and happy family man who made sure that his wife and daughter became members of the Marketing Department family.

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Oscar is survived by his wife Sunny DeShields and 17-year old daughter Lule DeShields.

The services for Oscar were Friday, May 2, at 9 a.m. at the Old North Church at Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills, CA, with interment at Forest Lawn.

If you would like to send cards to Oscar’s wife and daughter, please send them c/o Barbara Gross:

California State University, Northridge
Department of Marketing
18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge, CA 91330-8377

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