ACC Professor Elizabeth Coccia named Professional of the Year.

NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals, has selected Austin Community College Professor Elizabeth Coccia, Ph.D., for the Mel Schulstad Professional of the Year Award, in recognition of outstanding and sustained contributions to the advancement of the addiction counseling profession.  

Coccia has taught at ACC since 1989. She is a professor in ACC’s Human Services Department as well as a vacation-relief counselor at local outpatient chemical dependency treatment programs.  

“Her hard work in the trenches educating and training the new counselors coming into this field has been a sustained and invaluable contribution to the field of Chemical Dependency counseling, treatment, prevention and intervention,” said Richard Greene, vice president of the Austin Chapter of the Texas Association of Addiction Professionals (TAAP).

Coccia is an active TAPP member and served as Austin chapter president from 2001 to 2004.  She also serves on the Texas Certification Board of Addiction Professionals. She was involved with the Alcohol and Drug Assistance Ministries with her church and served as a dedicated addiction educator and trainer to clergy, family, and lay persons of all communities of faith.  

“I am so pleased that Liz has gotten this well deserved recognition from her national professional organization,” said Lynn Beaman, chair of ACC’s Human Services Department. “She has been a leader in the field of addictions counseling education and licensure for many years. Due to her efforts, many important standards have been adopted that ensure the knowledge and skills of addictions counselors. She’s also an exceptional professor. We’re very lucky to have her at ACC.”

Coccia, who is described by peers as possessing “personal integrity and an incredible work ethic,” has been lauded for her dedication to improving education and supervision requirements for the field of addiction counseling.  She applied for and received a mini-grant to develop curriculum materials to enhance student learning and developed online courses to give all ACC students access to education and the opportunity to become licensed chemical dependency counselors.

“I am honored to receive such a prestigious award from my colleagues,” Coccia said. “I hope that in coming years I have the privilege of seeing one of the graduates from our program accept this award for their dedication to the profession.”

NAADAC is the largest organization for addiction-focused health care professionals. Founded in 1972, NAADAC is committed to the professional development of individuals who treat and prevent addiction. NAADAC also works to improve the provision of treatment services through education and advocacy programs. 

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About the Austin Community College District (austincc.edu):

ACC, Central Texas’ community college, is the primary gateway to higher education and career training for residents in eight counties. The college provides access to affordable, quality education. ACC enrolls nearly 40,000 credit students, offering university transfer courses, two-year associate degrees, certificates, Early College Start, access programs that get students “college-ready,” and continuing education. At ACC you can “Start here. Get there.”