Bonnie Denise Jenkins (born in Queens, New York) is an expert on arms control and nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction and currently serves as the under secretary of state for arms control and international security affairs. During the Obama administration, she was the U.S. Department of State's coordinator for threat reduction programs in the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation.
Early life and education
Jenkins "didn't come from lots of money or anything" while growing up in the South Bronx and credited access to scholarships as a means to advance her education. She earned a BA from Amherst College, a MPA from the State University of New York at Albany, a JD from Albany Law School and an LL.M. in international and comparative law from the Georgetown University Law Center.
Career
Legal government career
Jenkins entered government as a Presidential Management Fellow serving in varying capacities in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and later the Office of Management and Budget. After completion of her fellowship, Jenkins served as a legal advisor for the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency to U.S. ambassadors and delegations negotiating arms control and nonproliferation treaties for almost a decade. After the Agency disbanded, Jenkins served as General Counsel to the U.S. commission to assess the organization of the federal government to combat the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and as a consultant to the 2000 National Commission on Terrorism.
Jenkins served as counsel on the 9/11 Commission. She was the lead Commission staff member on counter-terrorism policy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and on U.S. military plans targeting al Qaeda prior to 9/11.
Academic career
In the fall of 2000, Jenkins began her Ph.D. in international relations from the University of Virginia. During her studies, Jenkins served as a summer research fellow at the RAND Corporation's national security division focusing on weapons of mass destruction. Additionally, she was a pre-doctoral fellow at Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. During her years at Belfer, she served as an advisor at Harvard Law School's Bernard Koteen Office of Public Interest Advising. She completed her studies in 2005 with a thesis entitled Why International Instruments to Combat Nuclear Proliferation Succeed or Fail: A Study of Interaction of International and Domestic Level Factors and served as the program officer for U.S. foreign and security policy at the Ford Foundation. Her grant-making responsibilities sought to strengthen public engagement in U.S. foreign and security policy debate and formulation. She promoted support for multiculturalism, the peaceful resolution of disputes, and the international rule of law. She has been an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law School and co-led arms control and nonproliferation simulated negotiations at Stanford University's Center for International Center and Security Cooperation.
Military career
Jenkins began her military career in the United States Air Force Judge Advocate General's Corps in the Air Force Reserves. Later she transferred to the U.S. Naval Reserves, serving over twenty years including in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. She received numerous awards in her time as an officer in the Naval Reserve, including the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the Navy Pistol Marksman Ribbon.