No-Hee Park

No-Hee Park (born 1944) is a Korean-American scientist, dental educator, and academic administrator. He is dean and professor emeritus at the UCLA School of Dentistry and professor emeritus at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Park served as dean of the UCLA School of Dentistry from 1998 to 2016, the longest tenure in that school's history, and is the first Korean-American to be appointed dean of a major U.S. university. A member of the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, his research has focused on oral and head-and-neck cancer, human papillomavirus (HPV), cellular aging, and molecular carcinogenesis, resulting in more than 220 peer-reviewed publications.

Education and early career

Park received a D.D.S. from Seoul National University in 1968, followed by a Certificate in Periodontics (M.S.D.) from the same university. He served as a dental officer in the Republic of Korea Army for three years, retiring as a captain. He served as director of the UCLA Dental Research Institute and associate dean for research before his appointment as dean in 1998. He continues to contribute to grant-funded research through the UCLA Shapiro Family Laboratory of Viral Oncology and Aging Research. Later, Park shifted focus to the molecular mechanisms of human oral and oropharyngeal cancer. His laboratory's contributions include documenting the combined carcinogenic effects of tobacco-derived chemical carcinogens and herpes simplex virus, establishing the role of high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPVs) in the immortalization of normal human oral keratinocytes and in activating telomerase, and developing in vitro human oral epithelial cell lines representing the stepwise progression from normal to malignant states.

Park was elected a Fellow of the AAAS in 2012, recognized for contributions to oral cancer research and dental education, particularly in oral carcinogenesis, viral infection, and cellular aging.

Personal life

Park married Yubai Park in 1969. They have a daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter, who reside in Atlanta, Georgia. In May 2025, Park published an autobiography, Turning Points: Moments That Shaped Me, in both English and Korean, tracing his upbringing in post-Korean War South Korea and his scientific and academic career.