Ann Marie Stelma, Vice President of Continuing Education at Lackawanna College, has been awarded her doctoral degree by Marywood University. She has earned a Ph.D. in Human Development with specialization in Higher Education Administration.

In her vice presidential position, Dr. Stelma coordinates and administers all facets of Lackawanna’s Continuing Education Department, including special training programs designed to meet the needs of business and industry; the institution’s Allied Health Programs and its GED and Adult Basic Education Programs. In addition, she has direct oversight of the college’s satellite centers in Hazleton, Honesdale and Towanda, and a new Susquehanna County center which will open in the fall.

A Pittston resident, Ms. Stelma has over 20 years of experience in the educational field. Since 1985, she has held a variety of positions with Lackawanna, including Academic Development Specialist and Director of Developmental Education, and serves as a member of the President's Cabinet. Prior to coming to Lackawanna, she worked as an Instructional Specialist for Luzerne County Community College and as a Reading Specialist for the Tunkhannock Area School District.

She earned her bachelor's degree in Elementary Education and her master's in Reading from Bloomsburg State College and holds state certification as a Reading Specialist. Dr. Stelma’s dissertation topic was “The Effect of Participation in a Mentoring Program on Retention of First-Year, Full-Time, At-Risk Students Attending Two-Year Private Colleges Using Measures of Student Involvement, Institutional Commitment and Mentoring Perception.” In her work, she examined the experiences of 246 students in two private colleges who participated in mentoring programs in four different areas on a quantitative basis.

Ms. Stelma is an innovative educator who specializes in developing new programs to meet identified workforce needs. Among her successes, she initiated the college’s Vascular Technology Program and Paramedic Training Program that are now degree studies, established Mentoring and Developmental Education programs, and designed most of the institution’s continuing education courses. She worked with local companies and the Chamber of Commerce to create the Lackawanna College Pre-Employment Training Institute, which teaches the entry-level skills required of people joining the workforce so they meet basic industry standards.