Kathleen is the Florida Defense Alliance’s Family Support Working Group Chair and the Vice President of the Tampa Bay Defense Alliance.
Kathleen was born and raised in Florida and attended the University of Notre Dame on an Army R.O.T.C. scholarship. Kathleen remained at Notre Dame to complete her J.D., magna cum laude. While at Notre Dame Law School, Kathleen participated in the summer London Law Program, was the Federal Practice and Procedure Editor for the Notre Dame Law Review, and the President of the Military Law Students Association. After law school, she received a delay of her military service to clerk on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Kathleen was then selected by the Army General Counsel to participate in the Army General Counsel’s Honors Program. The program was highly competitive with only two Captains selected yearly. Kathleen was stationed in the Army General Counsel’s Office in the Pentagon, but her responsibilities included issues arising domestically and abroad. She primarily handled matters involving installations and the environment, including BRAC, Corps of Engineers’ projects and permitting, and privatized housing. Kathleen oversaw the largest BRAC property transfer in DoD history at that time (60,000 acres) and provided the legal review for the final transfer of funds to the Panama Canal Authority. At the request of the DoD General Counsel, Kathleen was detailed to DoD to provide critical advice on national security matters, congressional investigations, and litigation relating to the Global War on Terror. After her military service, Kathleen was an Associate General Counsel at the University of South Florida handling contract matters and legal issues related to athletics. Since having her children, Kathleen has focused on volunteering and has been active in her children’s schools by serving on boards and helping to expand programming. In addition to her work on behalf of the Florida Defense Alliance in support of military families, Kathleen helped establish TBDA’s national security pilot project with Berkeley Preparatory School. She helped design the program and secure National Security Council subject matter experts to teach students about national security decision-making and government operations, develop the capstone exercise, and facilitate site visits. Kathleen is also a member of the Tampa Bay Area Committee on Foreign Relations.