About the Director

Mrs. Paula Shelton is the Executive Director. Mrs. Shelton has held positions in Prince Georges County Schools as a Science Teacher and Technology Coordinator. Prior to joining the JHUAPL family she held the SMART Lab Facilitator position with in Washington, DC. In addition to her teaching experience Mrs. Shelton has served as the advisor and mentor for a NSBE Chapter and US FIRST Robotics Team.

She is a Fellow recipient of the Maryland Tech Academy and holds a B.S. degree from Howard University and a Master’s in Education from UMUC and is presently pursuing an MBA in Human Resource Management.

Mrs. Shelton is a member of numerous professional organizations to include:
American Society for Engineering Education
National Science Teachers Association
National Society of Black Engineers
Maryland Business Roundtable for Education
WEPAN-Women in Engineering, ProActive Network

She presently serves on the following advisory boards:
Project Lead the Way for Baltimore Schools
Maryland State Advisory Council for Gifted and Talented Education

Mrs. Shelton is very proud of the numerous students, she and a team of volunteers have assisted, who are presently in various colleges pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. She looks forward to the challenge of helping the MD MESA students achieve their dreams and making MD MESA a leader in producing the future Maryland STEM workforce.