Dr. Brodi J. Kotila is the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In this capacity, Dr. Kotila leads cross-Departmental policy development and integration, strategy and planning on behalf of the Secretary, the Deputy Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Policy. She also assists the Assistant Secretary in managing the Office of Policy’s professional workforce of 180 employees and approximately $40 million budget.
Prior to joining DHS, Dr. Kotila served as Chief of Staff to the Under Secretary of the Army. As the Under Secretary’s principal civilian advisor, she provided advice on policy, planning, program development and resource matters including force development, soldier and civilian recruiting, retention, training, health care, and family programs; organizational change and headquarters restructuring. Previously, Dr. Kotila was assigned to the White House Domestic Policy Council, where she led interagency policy development on veterans and military families issues including mental health care and suicide prevention for service members and veterans, support for military and veteran families and caregivers, education, training and employment of service members, veterans and their families.
From 2011-2014, Dr. Kotila served as Special Counsel to the Department of Defense General Counsel, where she advised the General Counsel, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary's senior staff on a range of issues including the Department's efforts to combat sexual assault in the military, the implementation of the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the role of women in military service, and selected legislative, detainee-related and counterterrorism matters.
Dr. Kotila holds a Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University, a J.D. from Yale Law School, and a B.A. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. She is a member of the Bar of Massachusetts and is an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve.