Columbia Regional Business Report names 2018 Women of Influence

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Twenty-two women — in professions from airport services to library science — have been named the 2018 Women of Influence by the Columbia Regional Business Report.

Each year, the Business Report honors a group of women who are setting the pace in their professional careers as well as working to make the Midlands a better place. They were nominated by Business Report readers and selected by a panel of judges.

Among this year’s honorees are professionals in nonprofits, architecture, real estate, banking, law, marketing, college administration and biofuels. A profile of each honoree will be published in the July 16 issue of the Business Report, and they will be honored at a luncheon on Aug. 9.

The 2018 honorees are:

• Roslyn Artis, president, Benedict College
• Mary Beth Branham, vice president, LS3P
• Chappelle Broome, director of human resources and diversity, Columbia Metropolitan Airport
• Laura Derrick, president, S.C. Association of Realtors
• Tameika Devine, attorney, Jabber & Isaac, and Columbia city councilwoman
• Lorie Gardner, CEO, executive producer and founding partner, Mad Monkey Inc.
• Melanie Huggins, executive director, Richland Library
• Ashley Hunter, CEO, MPA Strategies
• Elizabeth Igleheart, vice president of advancement, Transitions Homeless Center
• Jan Jernigan, first vice president, Morgan Stanley
• Erin Johnson, vice president for community investment, Central Carolina Community Foundation
• Michelle Lucas, director of financial services operations, The Cason Group
• Kathryn Moorehead, director of the Violence Against Women Act and Human Trafficking Programs, S.C. Attorney General’s Office
• Rita Patel, co-owner, Hotel Trundle
• Susan Pretulak, vice president of economic development, S.C. Technical College System
• Beth Renwick, owner, Green Energy Biofuel
• Julie Smithwick, executive director, PASOS
• Kimberly Snipes, young lawyer division and diversity coordinator, S.C. Bar Association
• Mullen Taylor, owner, lead attorney, Mullen Taylor LLC
• Teresa Wardlaw, president, Cool Care Heating & Air
• Mze Wilkins, regional president, Ameris Bank
• Sheila Willis, attorney, Fisher Phillips, and president of the S.C. Women Lawyers Association