click for hi-res Dr. Kimberly O'Connor

Dr. Kimberly O’Connor previously served as the Senior Advisor to the Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) where she provided advice and counsel regarding policies, programs and operations. She also worked on the expansion of the Department’s Secure Communities Program, including the public education initiatives regarding the program and the implementation of new reforms. She also served as Senior Advisor to the Commissioner of CBP where she focused on integrity issues and developed and executed a process to track and measure the success of integrity programs.

Prior to serving at CBP and ICE, Dr. O’Connor served from March 2009 – March 2011, as the Chief of Staff, Department of Homeland Security/Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement. In this role, she supervised the DHS Headquarters staff responsible for coordinating the Department of Homeland Security’s counter-drug policies, ensuring the adequacy of counter-drug resources, and tracking and severing the relationships between drug trafficking and terrorism.

Prior to joining the Federal service she served as the Director, Division for Substance Abuse Policy for former Governor Janet Napolitano in Phoenix, Arizona. During this time, she was responsible for policy initiatives and grant administration involving effective substance abuse prevention, treatment, and enforcement efforts in Arizona.

Dr. O’Connor served as the Bureau Administrator for the Arizona Department of Corrections, Counseling and Treatment Services Bureau; and as the Treatment Manager for the Arizona Supreme Court, Administrative Office of the Courts as well as other positions throughout the Arizona government. She has nearly eighteen years of experience in addressing substance abuse and criminal justice policy matters.

Dr. O’Connor assisted in authoring “The Model Drug Offender Accountability and Treatment Act” released through the Office of National Drug Control Policy, Executive Office of the President in June of 2004 and in 2005 was inducted into the Arizona Drug Court Hall of Fame.

Dr. O’Connor holds a Doctorate of Management with an emphasis in Organizational Leadership and a Master of Counseling from the University of Phoenix.