Focus On: Jennifer Boggs

Academy women are focused on the future, making things happen, taking charge of their lives and shaping the face of our nation. We are leaders, defenders, visionaries, nurturers, inventors and we are creating a new paradigm of leadership...in all industries...and in all functions. In the article that follows, we profile an academy graduate and her remarkable story. A story which we hope, will inspire you to continue your quest for personal excellence.

fo·cus
n., pl. -cus·es or -ci (-si', -ki').
A point at which rays of light or other radiation converge or from which they appear to diverge, as after refraction or reflection in an optical system: the focus of a lens. Also called focal point.
The state of maximum distinctness or clarity
A center of interest or activity.
Close or narrow attention; concentration.
A condition in which something can be clearly apprehended or perceived

v.tr.
To cause to converge on or toward a central point; concentrate.
To render an object or image in clear outline or sharp detail; bring into focus.
To direct toward a particular point or purpose.

v.intr.
To converge on or toward a central point of focus; be focused.
To adjust one's vision so as to render a clear, distinct image.
To concentrate attention or energy.

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Jen was then deployed overseas to Germany where she served as a Movement Control Commander and Personnel Officer. She was forward deployed to Bosnia and Hungary where she again had the opportunity to work in a multi-national operation with NATO and the UN. Jen finished out her military service as a Movement Control Officer at Fort Campbell in Kentucky in 2000 in the hopes of pursuing a career in peacekeeping. She applied to the UN while working in the private sector in logistics and fleet management.

Finally, Jen’s persistence was rewarded and in December 2002, she joined the United Nations at the UN Logistics Base (UNLB) in Brindisi, Italy, and became the first woman to be a Chief Transport Officer (CTO) in the history of UN peacekeeping. Jen moved between the UN Logistics Base in Italy and the Sudan as CTO for the United Nations Advanced Mission in Sudan (UNAMIS) and the United Nations Mission to Sudan (UNMIS). During her three year posting at UNLB, Jen was also deployed to Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire.

Jen left Sudan for Iraq in 2005 where she was responsible for the control and development of the UN mission’s vehicle fleet in Amman, Kuwait, Baghdad, Erbil, Basra and Kirkuk as part of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). She remained in Baghdad for 18 months and then was requested to turn her focus back to Sudan to support the hybrid op/mission UN mission in Darfur.

After several years abroad, Jen is leading the Darfur Planning Team stateside at UN Headquarters in New York City. Even though she lives back in the US, she still travels often to Africa and continues to enjoy the incredible experience of working with people from around the globe.

Jen Boggs’s impressive career began when she graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point in 1992. Jen’s 8 years of active duty took her around the globe and led her to the position which she currently serves. As a leader of the Darfur Planning Team, she is responsible for coordinating the logistical planning of military, civilian, and police deployment in the forthcoming United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), the first United Nations hybrid mission set to launch in 2008 with an unprecedented start-up budget of $1.5 billion dollars.

Jen’s first military post was in South Korea as a Platoon Leader where she trained and led a vehicle maintenance facility consisting of 5 US soldiers and 56 Korean drivers and mechanics. Meeting and working with so many Koreans was a fantastic experience and Jen found that she loved learning from people from another culture. Jen was the first American in 30 years to receive an award from the Korean Service Corps Union for improving work conditions and labor relations.

It was during her next deployment, while stationed at FT Bragg NC, that Jen had her first real exposure to working in a multi-national organization, when she deployed to Port au Prince as part of The United Nations Mission in Haiti (UNMIH). Jen was the only woman in a Special Forces battalion. The unit was in the rare situation of being blue-hatted as UN troops for the mission. The opportunity to work with people from so many different nationalities all working to support a country so in need of help was a real inspiration and it created a strong desire in Jen to pursue a career with United Nations peacekeeping.