Colonel (U.S. Army, Retired) Nancy E. Blacker, served in the U.S. Army for over thirty years to include both enlisted and commissioned service. Initially branched Field Artillery, she later became a Strategist (functional area (FA 59)). She served at Division level (25th Infantry Division), at two Combatant Commands (Pacific Command (now Indo-Pacific Command), and Special Operations Command), and several tours at the Pentagon. In the Pentagon she served in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) for Policy, Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities as the chief of Global Force Management; and in OSD Policy, International Security Affairs, in the Europe/NATO office as the Country Director for France, Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg, and in the Middle East office as the Country Director for Lebanon. Including her time as a RAND fellow and deployment to Iraq, she has well over 15 years of joint experience. She earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) and a Bachelor of Arts (Phi Beta Kappa) in Geography/Urban Planning, both from the University of Kentucky.