Forty-seven accomplished Connecticut women will be honored for their achievements in
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at the Connecticut Technology
Council’s 21st annual Women of Innovation® awards on October 27 in Branford, Conn.
Among the 47 finalists are three women from Southern: Julia Irwin, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs; Jackie Garofano, ’06, SCSU Foundation Board member and Microsoft executive; and Maritza Sanchez, SCSU chemistry student and Werth IAF (Industry Academic Fellowship) fellow.
These inspiring leaders were selected from a field of 100 nominations. Nominees include
scientists, researchers, academics, manufacturers, student leaders, entrepreneurs, and
technicians who are driving scientific advancement and business growth throughout Connecticut.
“Congratulations to our 2026 Women of Innovation honorees! For 21 years, this program has celebrated the incredible women whose ideas, leadership, and achievements are shaping Connecticut’s innovation community,” said Milena Stankova Erwin, CTC’s Executive Director. “We’re proud to continue this tradition and look forward to recognizing the inspiring impact these women are making across Connecticut and beyond.”
Julia Irwin
Julia Irwin joined Southern in 2008 and rose through the faculty ranks to earn a full professorship in psychology in 2017. She has an extensive publication record, with her work focused on audiovisual speech perception in children, including those with autism spectrum disorders. Prior to her appointment as interim dean of the SCSU School of Graduate and Professional Studies in 2022, Irwin was a senior research scientist at Haskins Laboratories and the director of the LEARN Center at Haskins Laboratories at Yale University.
A member of Southern’s SPAR million-dollar club, Irwin has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Science Foundation. Importantly, she has also mentored many of our Southern scholars at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Her wide-ranging extra-curricular contributions include serving as Coordinator of STEM Grants and Contracts as the university’s Research Integrity Officer and Director of Research Protection.
She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the State University of New York, Oswego, and holds an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut and was a post-doctoral research fellow at the Yale University Child Study Center.
Jackie Garofano
A three-time Women of Innovation finalist, Garofano is a first-generation college student and earned her bachelor’s degree at Southern in physics with honors in 2006. Throughout her collegiate career (as a member of the Honors College), she conducted research with Dr. Christine Broadbridge. In 2009, while pursuing a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering at UConn, she returned back to Southern to support Dr. Broadbridge as the Education & Outreach Coordinator (2009-11) and Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Coordinator (2009-15) for the CRISP MRSEC at Yale/SCSU. A SCSU Foundation Board member since 2019, she is currently serving as the Governance Committee Co-Chair. Most recently, she became the inaugural Innovation Fellow for the SCSU Innovation Hub working with Dr. Broadbridge and the team within the CSCU Quantum and Nanotechnology Center.
Garofano spent nearly a decade at RTX as a research scientist/engineer (RTRC) and leadership development program manager (HQ). Prior to joining Microsoft, she served as the CTO at CCAT for four years. Over her career, she has led programs funded by the Department of War, Army, Air Force, Navy and Department of Energy and partnered with national labs, universities, consortia, and global industrial companies. In her role at Microsoft as a mission account executive, she partners with the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) to advance mission-critical outcomes through secure cloud, cyber, AI, and data-driven innovations.
Her career has been marked with numerous honors: two-time “40 Under 40” honoree, three-time Women of Innovation®, Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Spark Award winner, Petit Family Foundation Women in Science Leadership Award recipient, CT Million Women Mentors STEM Mentor Award, and inducted into UConn’s Academy of Distinguished Engineers. Garofano has also published dozens of technical publications and holds multiple U.S. patents.
Maritza Sanchez
Maritza Sanchez has consistently demonstrated exceptional academic achievement and innovative thinking in chemistry and environmental science with a research portfolio that is impressive for an undergraduate student. After earning her associate degree in chemistry from CT State Gateway in 2025, she transferred to Southern to earn her B.S. in chemistry.
During the Yale Summer Enrichment Research Experience (YSERE), she worked in the Hepar Lab, where she produced biliary organoids from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to help test drugs against cystic fibrosis in the liver.
She was selected for the University of Florida International Research Experience for Undergraduates in Toulouse, France, where she researched the synthesis and optimization of carbon nanotubes. For this work, she won first place in the undergraduate Physical Sciences category at the AAAS Student E-Poster Competition and second place at the ACS-New Haven Student Research Symposium—making her the first community college student to achieve this distinction.
As a Werth IAF fellow at Southern, she investigates electrochemical methods to recover anode material from spent lithium-ion batteries. Most impressively, Sanchez displays remarkable independent creativity through Aquayac Energy, a project she founded to develop a microbial fuel cell out of recycled materials. This project aims to treat contaminated water and generate electricity for rural communities in Mexico, and earned her a spot as a fellow in the prestigious global beVisioneers: The Mercedes-Benz Fellowship.
In addition to her research achievements, Sanchez is a highly proactive leader who utilizes her skills to foster community and expand access to STEM. Her leadership roles include: president of the Gateway Math Club (Nov. 2023 – Aug. 2025), CEO and founder of The CC STEM Hub, Aspire Institute Community Leader, and NASA Collaborations. She has also demonstrated collaborative leadership through the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) and the NASA L’SPACE Academy, where she worked with team members to design aerospace materials and promote space exploration.
Sanchez also balances her high-level research and academic load while working part-time as a pharmacy technician. Her ultimate goal is to earn a Ph.D. in environmental chemistry and establish her own environmentally focused laboratory.
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.
