Jessica Reitz is currently posted to Haiti with USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) following two years in Afghanistan with OTI.  Jess was an A. Leon Higginbotham Public Service Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School where she received her master’s in public policy, and she holds a bachelor's in neuroscience from Duke University. Her research and studies focused on human rights, conflict resolution, national security, and intelligence.
 
Prior to working with USAID, Jess was an associate with the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School where she worked on intelligence policy and conflict resolution in Sudan. She also did political fundraising for USAction, a progressive grassroots organization promoting investment in America's future, and fundraising and program development for Free the Slaves, a non-profit organization combating human trafficking and modern slavery.
 
Jess previously served on the boards of Hearts with Haiti, The Coop, Women in International Security Northeast, and the New Leaders Council.