M. Tia Johnson

Johnson earned a Bachelor of Arts from Hampton University. While at Hampton University, she joined the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.[1] Johnson earned a Juris Doctor from the Temple University Beasley School of Law, a Master of Laws from the University of Virginia School of Law, another Master of Laws from The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School, and a Master of Science in strategic studies from the United States Army War College.[2]

Johnson began her career in the United States Army Judge Advocate General's Corps, where she specialized in international and national security law. She also served as a senior advisor to the director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In 2002, she became the first African-American female to be selected to the rank of Colonel in the U.S. Army's JAG Corps' 227-year history.[3] During the Obama administration, she served as assistant secretary of the United States Department of Homeland Security for legislative affairs. She was a visiting fellow at the University of Virginia School of Law and is a professor of national security law at the Georgetown University Law Center.[4]