Maj. Gen. Vanessa J. E. Dornhoefer is the Military Executive and Senior Policy Advisor to the Reserve Forces Policy Board, Office of the Secretary of Defense. The Reserve Forces Policy Board serves as an independent advisor to the Secretary of Defense, providing advice and recommendations to the Secretary on strategies, policies and practices designed to improve and enhance the capabilities, efficiency and effectiveness of the Reserve components.
Maj. Gen. Dornhoefer earned her bachelor's degree from the University of Missouri, Columbia, and received her commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corps. A career logistician, she has served in various command, operational and staff assignments, supporting several major commands, the Joint Staff, and the Air Staff, including special duty assignments as a Tanker Airlift Control Element Commander, Foreign Policy Advisor, Legislative Liaison and Senior Logistics Advisor. Additionally, she is a Level Ill Joint Qualified Officer.
Prior to assuming her current position, the general served as the Mobilization Assistant to the Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics, Engineering and Force Protection. Maj. Gen. Dornhoefer has also served in Europe and deployed in support of several operations, including Operations Resolute Support, Freedom Sentinel, Iraqi Freedom, Allied Force, Shining Hope, Southern Watch, Coronet Oak and Presidential support throughout Africa and India.
EDUCATION
1995 Bachelor of Arts, Political Science, University of Missouri, Columbia
2002 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
2004 Master of Arts, International and Intercultural Management, School for International Training, Brattleboro, Vt.
2007 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2010 Master of Science, National Security and Resource Strategy, Industrial College of the Armed Forces (Eisenhower School), National Defense University, Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.
2014 North Atlantic Treaty Organization Senior Officer Policy Course, NATO School, Oberammergau, Germany
2016 Joint Humanitarian Operations Course, Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance, Washington, D.C.
2017 Interagency Logistics Course, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Frederick, Md.
2017 Advanced Program in Logistics and Technology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
2020 Enterprise Leadership Seminar, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
2021 Inda-Pacific Command Seminar, Alan L. Freed Associates, Washington, D.C.
2023 United Nations Senior Mission Leader Course (UN-CAPSTONE), Tokyo, Japan
ASSIGNMENTS
1. September 1995–February 1996, Flight Line Maintenance Officer, 305th Aircraft Generation Squadron, McGuire Air Force Base, N.J.
2. February 1996–September 1997, Assistant Flight Commander, Red Sortie Generation Flight, McGuire AFB, N.J.
3. September 1997–August 1999, Maintenance Flight Commander, 721st Air Mobility Squadron (Contingency Response), McGuire AFB, N.J.
4. August 1999–August 2000, Tanker Airlift Control Element Commander, 721st AMS (Contingency Response), McGuire AFB, N.J.
5. August 2000–October 2004, Airlift Control Flight Operations Officer (Contingency Response), 439th Airlift Control Flight, Westover Air Reserve Base, Mass.
6. October 2004–July 2006, Deputy Course Director and Instructor, Mobility Operations School, Air Mobility Warfare Center, Fort Dix, N.J.
7. July 2006–November 2010, Individual Mobilization Augmentee to the Director, Policy Integration, Office of the Air Force Reserve, Headquarters Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va. (August 2009–June 2010, Research Fellow and Student, Industrial College of the Armed Forces (Eisenhower School), Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C.)
8. November 2010–August 2013, Commander, 25th Aerial Port Squadron, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
9. August 2013–February 2016, Assistant Deputy Foreign Policy Advisor, Headquarters, U.S. European Command, Stuttgart, Germany
10. February 2016–March 2017, Division Chief, Joint Logistics Operations Center, Directorate of Logistics, J-4 Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
11. March 2017–January 2018, Senior Individual Mobilization Augmentee to Director of Logistics, Headquarters Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
12. January 2018–January 2019, Mobilization Assistant to the Director of Logistics, Engineering, and Force Protection, Air Mobility Command, Scott AFB, Ill. (April 2018–October 2018, CJ4 Deputy Chief of Logistics and Chief of Plans, Headquarters, Resolute Support, Kabul, Afghanistan)
13. January 2019–November 2020, Mobilization Assistant to the Director, Legislative Liaison, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
14. November 2020–March 2022, Mobilization Assistant to the Commander, Ogden Air Logistics Complex, Hill AFB, Utah
15. March 2022–July 2024, Mobilization Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics, Engineering and Force Protection, HAF, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
16. July 2024–present, Military Executive and Senior Advisor, Reserve Forces Policy Board, Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
SUMMARY OF JOINT ASSIGNMENTS
1. August 2013–February 2016, Assistant Deputy Foreign Policy Advisor, Headquarters, U.S. European Command, Stuttgart, Germany, as a colonel
2. February 2016–March 2017, Division Chief, Joint Logistics Operations Center, Directorate of Logistics, J-4 Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va., as a colonel
3. April 2018–October 2018, CJ4 Deputy Chief of Logistics and Chief of Plans, Headquarters, Resolute Support, Kabul, Afghanistan, as a colonel
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal
Defense Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters
Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters
Air and Space Outstanding Unit Award with "V" device and silver oak leaf cluster
Afghanistan Campaign Medal with bronze star
Iraq Campaign Medal with bronze star
Nuclear Deterrence Operations Service Medal
Small Arms and Expert Marksmanship Ribbon
NATO Medal
French National Defense Medal
PUBLICATIONS
"A Tale of Two Villages: Bridging the Development Gap in Afghanistan· Joint Forces Quarterly, National Defense University, 2010 "Landing Short: The Need for Civil Affairs Airmen to Support the Air Force's Role in Building Partnership Capacity• Research Fellowship, National Defense University, 2010
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS AND ASSOCIATIONS
Air Force Association (Lifetime Member)
Logistics Officer Association (Lifetime Member)
Civil Affairs Association (Lifetime Member)
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION
Second Lieutenant August 24, 1995
First Lieutenant August 24, 1997
Captain August 24, 1999
Major August 24, 2003
Lieutenant Colonel August 24, 2008
Colonel August 06, 2013
Brigadier General November 21, 2019
Major General December 05, 2023
(Current as of September 2024)