Southern Connecticut State University Leaders Honored As 2025 'Women of Innovation'

From Southern Connecticut State University:

NEW HAVEN, CT — Forty-six accomplished Connecticut women will be honored for their achievements in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at the 20th annual Women of Innovation® awards, hosted by the Connecticut Technology Council (CTC) on October 28 in Bristol, Conn.

46 accomplished CT women, including 3 from SCSU, to be honored for achievements in STEM at 20th Women of Innovation® awards.

Among the 46 finalists are three women from Southern Connecticut State University: Tanya Henneghan, director, IT administration; Colleen Bielitz, interim vice president for institutional advancement; and senior Mariaceleste Florian, a physics major with minors in computer science and mathematics.

Three women from SCSU among finalists: Tanya Henneghan, director, IT administration; Colleen Bielitz, interim vp for institutional advancement; and senior Mariaceleste Florian, physics major with minors in computer science and mathematics.

Henneghan is a finalist in the Community Innovation and Leadership category, Bielitz in the Academic Innovation and Leadership – Post-Secondary category, and Florian in the Collegian Innovation and Leadership category.

These inspiring leaders were selected from a field of nearly 100 nominations. Nominees include scientists, researchers, academics, manufacturers, student leaders, entrepreneurs, and technicians who are driving scientific advancement and business growth throughout Connecticut.

Milena Stankova Erwin, CTC’s Executive Director, congratulated "All these amazing women – our 2025 Women of Innovation."

"The Connecticut Technology Council is committed and proud to carry on the legacy of this long-standing event in this 20th year," Erwin said. "With the support of our members, sponsors, and partners. We look forward to celebrating all the finalists, highlighting their impact in Connecticut and beyond."

Henneghan is a finalist in the Community category.

"Being named a finalist in this category is deeply meaningful to me," she said, noting, "It represents the connection between my professional life in IT and my personal passion for service, mentorship, and giving back."

For more than 25 years, Henneghan has worked across IT, data science, and engineering in industries like healthcare, defense, government, and higher education. She currently leads as the director of IT Administration for Southern, but just as important to her, she said, is using her position to mentor and inspire others, especially young women and youth from underrepresented backgrounds who are unaware of or are exploring careers in STEM.

"I’ve mentored college students, junior engineers, and professionals throughout my career—often outside of any formal role—because I believe it’s part of our responsibility as leaders pay it forward and to lift others as we climb," Henneghan said.

Each year, she helps lead the Youth Symposium for her sorority, Sigma Gamma Rho, Inc., where students are introduced to science, technology, leadership, and personal development. Henneghan also co-led Lockheed Martin’s first CodeQuest event in Stratford, Conn.—a Java and Python coding competition designed to get high school students excited about programming and future careers in technology.

At Clarkson University, one of her alma maters, Henneghan mentors underrepresented students through the National Society of Black Engineers, and as a former Outreach Chair for the Society of Women Engineers, she’s helped create programs that encourage girls and women to pursue STEM fields.

Bielitz is the state leader for Million Women Mentors and moderated the four Pathways to STEM events last year through the CT Office of Manufacturing. She has taught Women in STEM for FYRE for the past seven years and participates in the STEM GOES RED events each year, teaching young women about XR technology.

Bielitz said that “being named among this prestigious group of women is a profound honor and a testament to the incredible community of visionaries, mentors, and trailblazers who have inspired and uplifted me throughout my journey."

"It means standing on the shoulders of countless women who dared to ask not ‘Why me?’ but ‘Why not me?’," she said. "Women who, despite the odds, pushed boundaries, reimagined possibility, and believed wholeheartedly that our lives can be vehicles for meaningful change."

Bielitz said that being a finalist renews her commitment to open doors for others, to champion the next generation of women, and to remain always rooted in gratitude and service. ""It is a celebration not of what I have done alone, but of what we can all accomplish, together, with resilience and with faith in one another’s brilliance and boundless potential,” she said.

Florian has always been drawn to STEM and healthcare, and she has pursued research opportunities such as working with Southern professor Dr. Binlin Wu with Terahertz Raman spectroscopy at City College of New York.

On a fellowship for the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, she has conducted research at Indiana University on how high BMI affects cancer radiation treatment.

As a sophomore at Southern, she started the Women in STEM Club with two friends, with the goal of inspiring women “to pursue their goals, despite being underrepresented in their areas. We do this by focusing on mentorship, STEM outreach, and promoting professional opportunities, while creating a safe space for other topics and issues.”

"I am super proud of the club’s progress and cannot wait for what is to come," she said.

Now in her senior year, looking beyond graduation, she is applying to graduate schools to pursue her interest in clinical medical physics.

About the Women of Innovation program

Held annually since 2005, the Women of Innovation program has created a vibrant community of women and girls in STEM, passionate about making an impact, mentoring, leading, and sharing their expertise with those pursuing career development and growth. It is one of the largest networks of women in technology, science, and engineering in Connecticut.