AUBURN – Diane Dostie, dean of corporate and community services at Central Maine Community College, has been elected president of the National Coalition of Advanced Technology Centers. Dostie has served on the coalition board of directors since 2001 and has chaired its conference committee since 2002.

The coalition was formed in 1988 as a network of higher education resources that advocate and promote the use of technology applications to enhance economic and workforce development programs and services. It provides its 138-member colleges with the means to serve their own communities in more efficient and effective ways.

“All NCATC members share a commitment to economic development by serving the training needs of business, industry and individuals within their geographic service areas,” said Dostie.

“Central Maine Community College plays an active role in economic development and through this association we have gained valuable insight to continuously improving the way we design and deliver our programs,” she said.

Dostie holds a bachelor of science degree in industrial arts education and a master of science in education in educational leadership from the University of Southern Maine. Her economic development activity includes the Androscoggin County Chamber of Commerce board of directors and chairwoman of the education sub-committee; the River Valley Technology Center board of directors, of which she serves as secretary; Workforce Investment Board Area III director; and member of the Advisory Committee for the USM Department of Technology.

Her community involvement includes being co-chairwoman of the Lewiston-Auburn Cable Advisory Committee and a member of United Way Allocations Committee. In 1999 Dostie received the Androscoggin County Chamber of Commerce Education-Business Partnership Award for contributions to the improvement of local education.

Through its Division of Corporate and Community Services, the college provides custom training programs, noncredit classes and certification programs throughout Androscoggin, Oxford, Franklin and Lincoln counties. Its mission is to build long-term partnerships to meet individual and organizational development and workforce training needs.

For more information, call 755-5280.