Brenda McKinney

Brenda McKinney is a licensed attorney based in NYC and holds a Masters of Education (M.Ed.) from Boston College, a Master of Laws (LLM) from the University of Otago in New Zealand, and a Juris Doctor (JD) from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, where she was also one of seven Civitas Childlaw Fellows. From 2006-2009, Brenda was a high school ALT in Hyogo-ken, near Kobe city, and served on the Hyogo AJET board and the National AJET Council. Passionate about strengthening communities, grassroots international relations and the mission of the JET Program, Brenda has been actively engaged in JETAA chapters in Boston, Chicago, Washington D.C., New Zealand, and New York, most recently serving as JETAANY’s President. In addition to JETAA, Brenda is an alumna of the Fulbright program, AmeriCorps JD Program, Concordia Language Villages, and she has professionally served at the White House, United Nations, U.S. Department of State and USAID in Washington, D.C. Married to a New Zealand JET alumnus, Brenda enjoys spending her free time with her family and friends, spending as much time outdoors as possible, running long distances slowly, exploring museums and traveling (now in over 70 countries).