Tina Westby Jonas is an expert in military, defense, and aerospace industries. She was an undersecretary of defense at the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...

and had also served as chief financial officer of the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

. Jonas is currently an independent consultant in the defense and aerospace industries. She also serves in various boards in organizations in these sectors such as

The Aerospace Corporation The Aerospace Corporation is an American nonprofit corporation that operates a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) in El Segundo, California. The corporation provides technical guidance and advice on all aspects of space mi ...

Virgin Galactic Virgin Galactic is an American spaceflight company founded by Richard Branson and his British Virgin Group retains an 11.9% stake through Virgin Investments Limited. It is headquartered in California, and operates from New Mexico. The company i ...

, and

National Defense Industrial Association The National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) is a trade association for the United States government and defense industrial base. It is an 501(c)3 educational organization. Its headquarters are in Arlington, Virginia. NDIA was established ...

, among others.

Education

Jonas obtained her degree in political science from

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. She then completed her master's degree in liberal arts at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

. She also holds executive degrees from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government,

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Kellogg School of Management The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University (also known as Kellogg) is the business school of Northwestern University, a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1908, Kellogg is one of the oldest and most p ...

, and the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

's UTC Executive Education Program.

Career

Jonas became part of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee from 1995 to 2001. She worked under U.S. Representative Jerry Lewis of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, who recommended her to

Dov S. Zakheim Dov S. Zakheim (born December 18, 1948) is an American businessman, writer, and former official of the United States government. In the Reagan administration, he held various Department of Defense positions. Early life and education Zakheim was ...

. She was hired as one of Zakheim's deputies. In August 2002, she joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was later promoted to the position of Chief Financial Officer and assistant director of the FBI Finance Division. She was appointed the Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller), the top budget official at the Pentagon in 2004. She held this position after

Robert Gates Robert Michael Gates (born September 25, 1943) is an American intelligence analyst and university president who served as the 22nd United States secretary of defense from 2006 to 2011. He was originally appointed by president George W. Bush an ...

became the Secretary of Defense in 2006. Jonas oversaw DoD's financial management, including the 2006 budget worth more than $400 billion. An account described Jonas as a "liberal Republican" and was opposed by Conservatives for working against

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Presi ...

. She was also criticized by some defense officials for her treatment of senior budget officials who refused to work for her and eventually resigned during her years at the Pentagon. In her tenure, Jonas shut down the international office that coordinated the Afghanistan reconstruction, which was created by Zakheim. Jonas focused on the traditional role of the Defense comptroller until she ended her service in 2008. For her public service, Jonas was awarded the Distinguished Public Service at the DoD, the Joint Distinguished Civilian Service Award of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Distinguished Public Service Award for the Department of the Navy as well as the Army and Coast Guard, and the DOD Inspector General's Award for Excellence.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jonas, Tina W. George W. Bush administration personnel American chief executives United States Under Secretaries of Defense Arizona State University alumni Georgetown University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Living people