CSM Appoints Ellen Flowers-Fields as Vice President of Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development

“I am honored for this new opportunity to lead and continue to shape the future of community and workforce development education at CSM.”

The College of Southern Maryland (CSM) announces that CSM Associate Vice President Ellen Flowers-Fields will be appointed vice president of CSM’s Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development (CWD) effective July 1. The establishment of the Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development – which separates the CWD department from the Division of Learning – is part of a strategic organizational change approved May 18 by the CSM Board of Trustees to better serve the region’s workforce pipeline needs.

“Our credit-free student population encompasses half of our total enrollment, and our community partners are turning to us, more and more to serve them as a workforce pipeline and trainer of choice,” said CSM President Dr. Yolanda Wilson. “Ellen’s well-deserved promotion, and the establishment of this division, is a direct result of the excellent work she has done leading her team to increase our credit-free enrollment, engage community and industry partners, and spearhead several innovative and successful, initiatives.”

As vice president of CWD, Flowers-Fields will oversee all areas of the non-credit economic and community development programming including the Center for Trades and Energy Training, the Velocity Center, Maryland Center for Environmental Training, the Workforce Center, the Small Business Development Center, the Nonprofit Institute, the Center for Transportation Training and Adult Basic Education.

“I am honored for this new opportunity to lead and continue to shape the future of community and workforce development education at CSM,” said Flowers-Fields. “I applaud Dr. Wilson’s recognition of the significance of workforce development in our region, and the collective impact our industry engagement efforts have on the regional economy and the lives of our students.”

Flowers-Fields has more than 30 years of progressive professional experience in the field of workforce development and human capital management – the last nine of which have been with CSM. Throughout her career she has acquired and managed more than $100 million in support of various economic and community development initiatives. 

Her other roles have included: acting assistant secretary, and deputy assistant secretary of the Division of Workforce Development & Adult Learning at the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation (now the Maryland Department of Labor); regional director of economic development at the Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland; and executive director for Southern Maryland Works. In her role with Southern Maryland Works, Flowers-Fields led the effort to establish the region’s first One Stop workforce service delivery system and Workforce Investment Board under the Federal Workforce Investment Act.

Flowers-Fields is pursuing her master’s degree in Public Administration from Old Dominion University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Pace University in New York and certification from the International Business Innovation Association in Business Incubation Management. She is credentialed as a Global Career Development Facilitator from the Center for Credentialing and Education. Flowers-Fields is a 2009 graduate of the inaugural class of Leadership Southern Maryland and a 2016 League for Innovation in the Community College Excellence Award recipient. She is also an entrepreneur and a self-published author.

Her current affiliations include a gubernatorial appointment as vice chair of Maryland’s Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) – which serves as Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies. She is also a member of the American Association of Community College’s Economic & Workforce Development Commission; an executive board member for the Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland; a member of the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals and of the Maryland Economic Development Association. Previously, she served as a board member on the Maryland Broadband Coordination Board; as past board chair for Bethel House Inc.; and as treasurer for the Community Foundation of Southern Maryland.

You may also be interested in reading “CSM Associate Vice President Ellen Flowers-Fields receives Maurice Erly Professional Development Award.”