Melissa Mathews

Dr. Melissa Mathews is an Associate Professor of Public Policy and Administration in the Graduate Center for Public Policy and Administration at California State University, Long Beach. Dr. Mathews’s research agenda, teaching interests, and service commitments are motivated by her nonprofit and public sector experiences for almost 25 years. She successfully led nonprofit organizations as an executive director and was awarded more than $750,000 in grant and foundation support. Also, she has served as a community organizer to promote civic engagement, strengthen communities, and advance public policy initiatives. As an engaged scholar, Dr. Mathews continues to provide consulting and research support to communities, cities, and nonprofit organizations.

 

Dr. Mathews holds a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development from the University of Minnesota and a master’s degree in public affairs from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.

Dr. Mathews’s research contributes to and is informed by nonprofit theory and practice, civic engagement and public participation, and the voluntary sector and civil society. Her research examines the governance and management of nonprofit organizations with a focus on board and executive director dynamics, and the role of neighborhood associations and community-based nonprofit organizations in civic engagement. Dr. Mathews also analyzes the extent that nonprofit organizations and voluntary associations enact governance processes that promote democratic governance.

Mathews, M. A. (2022). Trees die from the top: A case study of conflict among the board, board chair, and executive director. Journal of Nonprofit Education and Leadership. Online first, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.18666/JNEL-2022-11470

 

Mathews, M. A. (2021). Understanding the roles and contributions of neighborhood organizations in civic governance. VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 32(4), 821-829.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-021-00369-z

 

Mathews, M. A. (2020). Nothing about us without us: Community development as human resource development.Human Resource Development International, 24(4), 359-376. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678868.2020.1846404

 

Mathews, M. A. (2020). Toward an understanding of civic engagement capacities within a municipal civic participation system. The Social Science Journal.  

https://doi.org/10.1080/03623319.2020.1750122

 

Mathews, M. A. (2019). The embeddedness of nonprofit leadership in civic governance. VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 31(1), 201-212.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-019-00139-y

 

Mathews, M. A. (2019). Betwixt and between the board chair and executive director: Dyadic leadership role perceptions within nonprofit organizations. Journal of Nonprofit Education and Leadership, 9(3), 282-300. https://doi.org/10.18666/JNEL-2019-V9-I3-8895

 

Hahn, H. J., & Mathews, M. A. (2018). Learning behaviors as a linkage between organization-based self-esteem and in-role performance. Journal of Management & Organization, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1017/jmo.2018.17

Faculty Small Grant, $5,000, Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity, College of Health and Human Services (CSULB), 2024-2025

Faculty Small Grant, $5,000, Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity, College of Health and Human Services (CSULB), 2021-2022

Recipient of Outstanding Dissertation Award ($500) conferred by the University Council for Workforce and Human Resource Education, 2018