Valencia M. Smith is a native of Memphis. She graduated salutatorian from Hillcrest High and was featured in Ebony Magazine as one of the Top 40 Black Seniors in the nation. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from LeMoyne-Owen College with her B.S. in Biology and continued at the University of Memphis, where she received her MPH. Valencia is a Medical Device Consultant with over 10 years of experience in sterilization, quality systems and project management, collectively. She is the owner of Consult One LLC, a consulting agency that offers guidance and expertise to medical  device manufacturers and distributors . She is a member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), serves on the board of the American Red Cross and is an advocate for gender equality, S.T.E.M, and education empowerment. She attributes a great deal of her success to her mentors and strongly believes, "inside every girl lies something hidden, an  unseen woman waiting to be discovered".