Anne Kimberley “Kim” Joiner still has to pinch herself when she walks into a room at the Pentagon and senior military officials – anyone whose rank is less than the equivalent of a one-star general - stand to greet her. The Deputy Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Strategic Engagement Joiner, a position President Donald Trump appointed her to in May 2018; Joiner is the civilian equivalent of a General officer in the Department of
Defense (DOD).
    Her job is to connect American citizens to their military through strategic outreach. She does this by showcasing the various programs, jobs and capabilities men and women who serve undertake on behalf of our national defense. “I get to tell the story of the 1 percent to the 99 percent,” she explained.     
    Joiner believes she has the best job in the DOD, and even once told (former) Secretary of Defense General Jim Mattis this. “It’s a privilege to tell the story of the people who keep you safe every day.” Every American, she said, should understand what they do.”
    Joiner got to and maintained her position, she told hundreds local high schoolers at the recent Ashland Community and Technical College’s Young Women Lead conference at the college’s Technology Drive Campus by “showing up and working harder than everyone else,” every day for her 30-year and counting career.
    Although there are increasingly more high-ranking women in the rooms of power she frequents, there is still a burden of proof that her gender carries. “Do I have to go and prove myself at every meeting? Sure,” she said,” I am prepared to do that.”
    In addition to being prepared and well-dressed young women must also be assertive and confident in their abilities in order to achieve the goals and obtain positions of power they want. “It is all about seizing those opportunities and having confidence in knowing you have every part (of the qualifications) to be where you are,” she said. “If it is something you want bad enough, make the sacrifices for it,” she added, asking them “Are you ready to go lead?”
    Recognizing their own power and the ability to wield it was a major theme of Joiner’s keynote remarks to the students. She advised the young women of the need to constantly safeguard their image by being extremely contentious and cautious of the private information they share on social media, through text messages or other Internet platforms. (Part of Joiner’s job is overseeing the DOD’s digital engagement team, which supports 14 platforms and 8 million followers.) “Anything you put on the internet never dies,” she said, adding nude photos “are never okay.”  
    Joiner was born in Ashland and is a graduate of Paul G. Blazer High School. She attended Georgetown College on the Christian Leadership Scholarship, where she earned bachelor's degrees in political science and communications. She began her career in public service by interning for then Congressman James P. Bunning at his field office in Ashland. After graduating she made her way to Washington, D.C., where she continued working for Bunning, who eventually became a Senator for the next 12 years.  
    She then transitioned to working for President George W. Bush’s administration taking a position in the Department of Homeland Security as the director of immigration transportation and border security in the Office of Legislative Affairs. She then worked as the director for business development at both General Atomics and FLIR. Prior to her current appointment Joiner served on President Trump’s transition team as a “Sherpa,” guiding William Hagerty, now the U.S. Ambassador to Japan, through the Senate confirmation process.