Profile
I serve as the Senior Communication Advisor for the Biometric Entry/Exit program at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). I advise CBP leadership who oversee the Entry/Exit program on communication strategies and outreach.
With more than 20 years of federal service specializing in Public Affairs and stakeholder outreach, I have spent the majority of my career managing press and stakeholder engagement related to the biometric Entry/Exit mission and efforts to further secure and streamline travel. I was the spokesperson for the original Entry/Exit office at the Immigration & Naturalization Service (INS) and stayed with the program when it transitioned to US-VISIT, then to the Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM), and now to CBP, which received the Entry/Exit mission in 2013.
My main role is to educate and inform various audiences, including the press, public, and key stakeholders, about the benefits of expanding facial comparison technology into the travel process through public-private partnerships to further secure and enhance the customer experience. CBP has a Congressional mandate to biometrically record all foreign nationals who enter and exit the United States. Years of testing have demonstrated that biometric facial comparison technology is the most secure, efficient and cost-effective way to fulfill the Congressional mandate while protecting the privacy of all travelers. Overall, the use of facial biometrics provides travelers with a hygienic, touchless process that modernizes air travel, which is even more essential today in light of COVID-19.
Sessions