Kristen Kavanaugh is the vice chair of the U.S. Department of Defense’s inaugural Defense Advisory Committee on Diversity and Inclusion. This committee provides advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the improvement of racial/ethnic diversity, inclusion and equal opportunity within the department, with a primary focus on military personnel. A U.S. Naval Academy graduate and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Kavanaugh is a co-founder of the Military Acceptance Project (MAP), which helped lead to the military’s repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy regarding LGBTQ+ service members. She is a USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work alum.