Connie Benesh currently serves as the Outreach Manager for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program. In her role, she enables small businesses to explore their technological potential and profit from its commercialization through effective communication, strategic planning, and outreach efforts. Ms. Benesh began supporting the DHS SBIR Program in 2017, serving as a contractor for the DHS Science & Technology Office of Industry Partnerships. Prior to working at DHS, Ms. Benesh leveraged her communications experience to support a variety of government and private clients and spent six years working at ETV Radio, a National Public Radio member network serving the state of South Carolina. She received her B.A. in Communications with a minor in Political Science from the University of South Carolina.