The ancient redwoods towered overhead, some hollowed enough to step inside. Though she had grown up surrounded by the forests of West Virginia, Dr. Candace Riley had never seen anything like these massive sentinels of the Pacific Northwest. "It was just mind-blowing," she remembers of that graduate school trip to Oregon. "Trees of that size and that magnitude was just something that I'll never forget." That unforgettable moment of awe underscored a passion for natural and recreational spaces, one that took an unexpected route to become her career focus as a Professor in Parks and Recreation Management and Event Planning Management at PennWest California.

Initially exploring health sciences as an undergrad, her path shifted when she discovered programs in parks and hospitality—areas that truly resonated with her personal interests and sparked a new direction. Fortunately, her university offered these programs, and it was there, mentored by professors who taught her "all about parks, the different benefits that we get from parks," that a true passion took root, setting her on an academic path through Concord University and then West Virginia University, where she received a Master's in Recreation Parks and Tourism Resources and then a PhD in Forest Resource Sciences, maintaining an emphasis on recreation, parks, and tourism resources.

Today, Dr. Riley brings both academic knowledge and lived appreciation to her PennWest classrooms. Her courses cover the wide spectrum of parks and leisure, from managing commercial operations like resorts and theme parks to understanding the critical role parks play in community health and inclusivity. She guides students to examine potential "constraints" that might prevent diverse populations from participating fully in outdoor recreation and to develop strategies for making these spaces more welcoming and accessible to everyone.

Dr. Riley emphasizes that connecting with nature doesn't require epic journeys; it can start simply, perhaps by taking photos of flowers or joining a local walking club. For her, parks and leisure are fundamental to wellbeing. Through her teaching, she illuminates how understanding the vital links between people, communities, and managed natural spaces creates pathways to meaningful careers—opportunities PennWest students can readily discover and pursue.