Jolynn Shoemaker is the Executive Director of Women in International Security (WIIS), the only global network actively advancing women’s leadership, at all stages of their careers, in international peace and security.  Before joining WIIS, Ms. Shoemaker worked for the Institute for Inclusive Security, an organization that is dedicated to increasing women’s participation in peace processes.  

Ms. Shoemaker has served in policy and legal positions in the U.S. Government.  She worked in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, focusing on the Balkans region.  She also worked as an attorney in the General Counsel’s Office for International Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, where she negotiated international agreements to prevent the proliferation of WMD.  Ms. Shoemaker was a Presidential Management Fellow (PMF) in the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, where she was responsible for monitoring human rights and asylum issues in Africa.  During the 2008 presidential campaign, Ms. Shoemaker served in a volunteer role as Policy Director for Blue Star Families for Obama.

Ms. Shoemaker has a J.D. and an M.A. (Security Studies) from Georgetown University, and a B.A. from University of California, San Diego.  She has published extensively on women, peace, and security and on women’s leadership.  Ms. Shoemaker is a member of the New York Bar, a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a member of Blue Star Families.  She is married to Giles Giovinazzi, a congressional staffer and Navy Reservist, and they have one young daughter.