Parkland College VP Named 2024 ATHENA Young Professional
A Parkland College administrator will be receiving a countywide award for leadership in September.
A Parkland College administrator will be receiving a countywide award for leadership next month.
Dr. Stephanie Stuart, vice president for strategic partnerships and workforce innovation and the college's chief communications officer, has been awarded the 2024 ATHENA Young Professional Award from the Executive Club of Champaign County, the ECCC announced today.
Stuart will accept the award at the ATHENA Awards ceremony Thursday, Sept. 19, at Venue CU in downtown Champaign.
The ATHENA Young Professional Award recognizes an emerging female leader who demonstrates excellence, creativity, and initiative in her business or profession. The recipient also provides valuable services to improve the quality of life for others in her community and serves as a role model for young women.
Stuart joined Parkland College in 2017 as the director of marketing and public relations and was promoted to the role of vice president for communications and external affairs in 2018. In 2023, her title was updated to encompass strategic partnerships and workforce development. She now leads the college's workforce development division as well as oversees its continuing education and business training, marketing and public relations, entrepreneurship, grants and sponsored programs, and government relations areas.
She was named one of Central Illinois Business Magazine's Forty Under 40 in 2014 and serves on several community boards and councils. In 2021, she served as the board chair for the Champaign County Economic Development Corporation. She also represents the college as part of the Metropolitan Intergovernmental Council, Champaign County First, and the United Way of Champaign County Board of Directors.
A two-time graduate of the University of Illinois, earning her B.S. in Journalism and M.S. in Strategic Brand Communication, Stuart earned her Doctorate in Education with a specialization in Community College Leadership from Ferris State University in 2024. She began her career in the tech sector before transitioning into a more community-focused role in 2012, becoming director of communications and community relations for the Champaign Unit 4 School District. There, she led the school district's communications strategy for a $183 million school bond referendum that passed in 2016.
In 2024, Stuart earned the Illinois Community College System Administrative Leadership Scholarship for her dissertation research on collaboration between community colleges and land grant universities. She was selected by her peers as the Ferris State DCCL Program student speaker and by her faculty as the recipient of the 2024 Promising Leader Award.