Lakeland Community College Women’s Center is set to host the 30th annual Woman of Achievement Awards Sunday, March 26, at 2 p.m. The event will take place in the Dr. Wayne L. Rodehorst Performing Arts Center and is free and open to the public. This event is an excellent opportunity to recognize the contributions of outstanding women in our community and to celebrate their achievements.

The awards ceremony will honor six exceptional local women whose lives exemplify the theme, “From Our Foundation to Our Future.” The theme recognizes women who have played a foundational role in Lake County and/or are taking the county toward a positive future. The honorees were nominated by colleagues, students, or friends who recognized their positive contributions, assistance to women, and their roles as an example to others.

The six honorees are:

• Brianna Fawcett, detective in the Eastlake Police Department
• Gladys Figueroa Stec, bilingual victim advocate at the Lake County Prosecuting Attorney’s office and co-founder of Hispanic Women of Lake and Ashtabula County (HOLA)
• Molly Hill, longtime volunteer in Lake County for the YMCA, Western Reserve Junior Service League and Birthright. Originator of YMCA’s Dream House fundraiser
• Shayna Jackson, CEO of Crossroads Health
• Betty Haynes Jacobs, executive director of LGBTQ+Allies, Lake County
• Christine Weber, president and CEO of Mentor Area Chamber of Commerce

In addition to the Woman of Achievement Awards, the event will recognize the first-ever recipients of the Meredith A. Ring Scholarship. The scholarship is named after the founder of Lakeland’s Women Center, who was also the director for more than 20 years. A “30 for 30” campaign was established in honor of the 30th year of the Woman of Achievement Awards. Former Women of Achievement award recipients donated funds and served as scholarship judges. Thirty Lakeland students have been awarded up to $1,000 each for the 2023/24 academic year, and they will be recognized at the ceremony.

Daria J. Willis, Ph.D., president of Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland, will be the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony. Her message is expected to inspire and uplift the audience.

By: Adam Continenza, Marketing & Communications Specialist