CONWAY, Ark. (April 11, 2016) – Hendrix College alumna Wendy R. Anderson ’93 was recently named to the Hendrix Board of Trustees.
Anderson, a North Little Rock, Arkansas native, has more than 20 years of experience in defense, foreign policy, homeland security, and intelligence.
From 2010 to April 2015, Anderson served in the Obama administration in key leadership roles in the Departments of Defense and Commerce, including as Deputy Chief of Staff to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Chief of Staff to Deputy Secretary of Defense Ash Carter (the current Secretary of Defense), and
Chief of Staff to Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker.
While at the Defense Department, she was twice awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, the Department’s highest civilian service award, presented by Secretaries of Defense Leon Panetta and Chuck Hagel.
In July 2014, National Journal described Anderson as one of the “25 Women Who Shape National Policy,” one of five singled out for her leadership in defense.
From 2004 to 2010, she held a number of senior positions in the United States Senate, serving as professional staff on the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, managing the international security portfolio, and was lead staff on South Asia
(Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India) and the Middle East. During her Senate tenure, she also worked for Senators Barbara Mikulski, Tom Carper, and Frank Lautenberg, on intelligence, defense, and veterans and foreign affairs.
Prior to her time in government, she served as Deputy Director of External Affairs at the Women and Public Policy Program at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, where she worked on conflict resolution and post-conflict reconstruction in South Asia, the Middle
East, and sub-Saharan Africa. In this role, Anderson coordinated with government and business leaders, journalists and educators, and local organizations in the Balkans, Burundi, Cyprus, India, Israel and the West Bank, Northern Ireland, and Rwanda.
“Wendy Anderson is remarkable example of how Hendrix helps students to develop their fullest potential and prepares students to make a difference,” said Hendrix President Bill Tsutsui. “We are thrilled to have her as the newest member of the Board of Trustees. Her experience and
perspective will be a tremendous asset to College as we plan for the future.”
Anderson said, “I am deeply honored to have been asked to serve on the Hendrix Board of Trustees. Hendrix is an exceptional institution, the center of which is an incredibly talented community of people laser-focused on how to make a difference in the world.”
“For me, it all began there, in small classrooms with thoughtful professors who encouraged – and modeled – how to inquire, probe, and deliberate, to more effectively engage with oneself and the world,” she said. “I am grateful to have the opportunity to give back.”
Anderson currently serves as Partner and Managing Director of Military and National Security Initiatives at Strong Eagle Media, a Los Angeles-based media company committed to producing films chronicling the stories of American troops who have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
She also serves as Executive Producer on Citizen
Soldier and Danger Close, two films about the central role of the National Guard and Special Ops Forces in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that will be released in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
She is also an adjunct Senior Fellow of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program at the Center for a New American Security and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Anderson’s analysis and commentary has been sought by ABC News, The Washington Post, FOX News,Foreign Policy, The Atlantic Times, among others. Her writing has appeared in a number of media outlets, including POLITICO. She herself has been featured in Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, POLITICO’s
The KGB File and Morning Defense,Foreign Policy, and National Journal.
Anderson is the recipient of the 2011 Hendrix Odyssey Medal for Global Awareness. After graduating from Hendrix in 1993, she was a Thomas J. Watson Fellow and later received her master’s degree in theological studies from Harvard University, and a master’s degree in international affairs
from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.
For more information, visit
www.wendyrandersonglobalstrategies.com
About Hendrix College
Hendrix College is a private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas. Founded in 1876 and affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884, Hendrix is featured in Colleges That
Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think about Colleges and is nationally recognized in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings for academic quality, community, innovation, and value. For more information, visit
www.hendrix.edu.