Florida Tech’s Samantha Miles is earning praise across the Space Coast and beyond for her work as executive director of the university’s Vertex Applied Innovation Hub. She’s also earning recognition: The Women in Defense (WID) Space Coast chapter has honored Miles with its Academic Excellence in National Security Award.
The award was presented at SpaceCom, a premier global gathering for space professionals. It highlights a shared commitment to strengthening connections among industry, government and academia.
Vertex and WID share a common mission: to enable engagement and meaningful interaction across the defense and space industries. With professional development, advocacy and collaboration, WID supports leadership and opportunity, while Vertex advances Florida Tech’s research and workforce development by aligning academic innovation with real-world challenges.
“The challenges we face now in space and defense are too complex to solve in silos. Progress requires collaboration across sectors, institutions and disciplines,” Miles said. “At Florida Tech and Vertex, we see the real value of organizations like Women in Defense, which create the trusted connections that turn collaboration into mission-driven impact.”
The interconnected innovation community even extends to the physical award itself. The plaque was made by Catania Product Development, a member of Vertex’s inaugural Techcelerator cohort, which supports emerging companies on the Space Coast. The company also sponsored the award.
Florida Tech and WID are currently exploring opportunities to deepen their partnership, including expanded student engagement and future collaborative programming.
