Malaina Mote

Malaina Mote graduated from Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) with her Bachelor of Arts in Communication concentration in Public Relations, in 2015. After graduating from FGCU, Mothers Against Drunk Driving offered her the Program Specialist position, which she worked for two years. Responsibilities included working closely with teens to prevent underage drinking, outreach and media relations.

In September of 2017, Malaina joined Collaboratory and now leads equity strategy and the scholarship program where she manages 24 million dollars of scholarship funds and the entire application process. Malaina visits high schools, all over the SWFL region, talking about the importance of being financially secure during the journey of post-secondary education.

She is also a member of the FutureMakers Coalition Access and Entry Team and Equity Action Team, and a social media influencer who created The Mixed Aspect (@TheMixedAspect), a platform that focuses on racial equity and the challenges faced by individuals of mixed backgrounds. In 2019, Malaina published her first children’s book, Lavender, What are You?, that has sold copies in the United States, Italy, United Kingdom and Canada. Malaina has been a part of many cohorts in the SWFL community and internationally, including Impact SWFL, FGCU’s Alumni Leadership programs and A New Way of Working. Recently, Malaina won two prestigious awards: Florida Gulf Coast University’s Soaring Eagle Award ’21 and Gulfshore Business’s 40 under 40 2021.