2021 Women Who Rock Winners

Congratulations to the winners of the 2021 Women Who Rock Awards, and to the record number of nominees. We celebrate all 65 female women and businesses nominated across five categories -- fierce champions of women in the workplace.

“We are honored to celebrate such hard-working, deserving women and local businesses who not only have perservered during an extremely challenging year, but are wonderful examples of leadership in action,” said weVENTURE WBC Executive Director Kathryn Rudloff. “Through their commitment to helping others, each has demonstrated the heart of a servant leader and helped create a community where women are supported, encouraged and inspired.” 

Let’s meet this year’s winners, as announced by weVENTURE Women’s Business Center in Florida Tech’s Bisk College of Business:

Kelley Higney

Female Small Business Owner of the Year

Higney, CEO and founder of Bug Bite Thing, describes herself as a mom on a mission to educate the world on a better way to alleviate the effects of bug bites and stings.   

Bug Bite Thing, a chemical-free and eco-friendly solution that alleviates the discomfort, stinging, itching, and swelling caused by insect bites and stings, is Amazon’s #1 selling product for insect bite relief with over 30,000 positive reviews.

Rochelle Hood

Excellence in Mentorship

Hood is CEO of Pink Consulting, a project management, process intelligence and customer experience consulting firm. She dedicates enormous amounts of her time to mentoring other women in her roles with ABWA Oceanside and Space Coast chapters, as well as weVENTURE WBC.  

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rochelle took on additional weVENTURE clients and led more than a dozen group trainings to help female entrepreneurs pivot their businesses and update their marketing plans, helping them survive and thrive.

Lockheed Martin

Women in the Workplace Champion – Corporate Category

Lockheed Martin goes above and beyond empowering and maximizing female talent, championing women in the workplace, and creating a new model of excellence for ethical standards and commitment to creating equality for all employees.

The company’s Executive Inclusion Council reinforces diversity and inclusion strategies as imperative business drivers. By working with internal and external stakeholders, the council advocates and supports diversity, inclusion, and equality within their business areas and key functions. 

Numerous business resource groups have been created to empower employees, including Able Allies, the African American Council for Excellence, the Professional Asian American Network, the LGBT Professional Network, and the Women’s Impact Network (WIN). 

Shalarie Highsmith

Women in the Workplace Champion – Individual Category

As deputy chief of education and training for Department of Defense, Patrick Space Force Base, and adjunct professor at Eastern Florida State College, Highsmith excels in helping others reach their academic success. She has helped process $1.3 million in school tuition, 1,725 enrollments and equipped 150 graduates with achieving their degree ambitions while serving our nation.   

Highsmith has been a champion of women, helping to create a safe envorionment for women in the workplace by volunteering to become a certified Sexual Assault Victim Advocate.  Shalarie has provided care to personnel who have been directly affected by sexual assault crimes and helped develop and execute awareness programs to educate and coach Airman (military and civilians) on sexual assault prevention and healthy relationships, including implementation of a zero tolerance policy to ensure personnel feel safe at work.  

Dr. Kelli Hunsucker

Dr. Mary Helen McCay STEM Award

Assistant professor of oceanography at Florida Institute of Technology, Hunsucker’s research focuses on benthic organisms (i.e. algae, barnacles, oysters, mussels) and their settlement on man-made structures, an occurrence known as biofouling. However, she is best known for her creative outreach to engage her students and local youth in marine science and engineering.  

Hunsucker has directed Florida Tech’s Marine Science & Coastal Engineering Camp since 2013, which hosts middle and high school students each summer for a week of field trips and laboratory experiments and building a remotely operated vehicle for underwater research. She feels strongly about the importance of exposing students to hands-on engineering, and discussing ways to integrate science into their design. 

Tara Pagliarini

Zonta Yellow Rose for Excellence in Community Service

The executive director of Family Promise of Brevard is a relentless ambassador for struggling Brevard families. With a masters degree in social work and 15 years in management, Pagliarini’s education, background and experience in collaboration with community stakeholders ensures that Brevard families receive creative, strength-based, multi-systemic approaches to ending their own homelessness.  

When the need skyrocketed during the pandemic and emergency shelter options were disrupted, Pagliarini and her staff responded quickly to provide this critical support through alternate locations where safety measures could be applied. 

To learn more about weVENTURE or see all the nominees in 2021, visit https://weventure.fit.edu/events/women-who-rock-awards/