Gina Ortiz Jones
Former Under Secretary of the U.S. Air Force
Gina Ortiz Jones, a first-generation American raised by a single mother in San Antonio, was
taught early on about the importance of service by her family. She graduated from John Jay
High School, and earned an Air Force ROTC scholarship that took her to Boston University.
Jones served as an intelligence officer in the Air Force and deployed to Iraq. Upon separating
from the Air Force, she advised on military operations in Latin America and joined the Defense
Intelligence Agency as an inaugural member of U.S. Africa Command in Stuttgart, Germany.
Gina went on to serve in the Executive Office of the President, leading portfolios at the
intersection of economic and national security. In 2021, President Biden nominated Jones, and
the U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed her to serve as the 27th Under Secretary of the Air
Force, the first woman of color and first out lesbian to serve as the Under Secretary of any
military department. For her service, she earned the Department of Defense Medal for
Distinguished Public Service, the department’s highest civilian award.
Jones serves on the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Board of Directors, the Asian
American Foundation Advisory Council and is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign
Relations. Jones has advanced degrees from Boston University, the University of Kansas, and
the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies.
