Empowering Voices, Building Community | Behind the ERG

In our ongoing Behind the Employee Resource Group (ERG) series, we highlight AIR’s ERGs and their leaders, emphasizing the vital role these groups play in fostering diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in today’s diverse workplaces. This month, we’re spotlighting AIR Stars & Stripes, an ERG dedicated to veterans and those with military backgrounds or interests. Stars & Stripes builds a culture that fosters innovation and enhances programs aligned with AIR’s mission, while creating opportunities for employees to grow, learn, and connect.

In this Q&A, learn more from the leadership team of AIR Stars & Stripes about their military service, their journeys to AIR, the impact they’re making within our organization, and their commitment to fostering a supportive community for veterans and allies at AIR.

Andrew Blank, MPH, PMP | Project Specialist | Chair

What motivated you to take on a leadership role with Stars & Stripes?

As a Navy veteran, I’ve experienced highs and lows related to military service, from Kabuki theater in Tokyo after a successful submarine deployment, to losing shipmates to suicide and substance use, and my own struggle to transition to the civilian workforce. I appreciate how important our ERG and its mission are to staff from similar backgrounds and to the work AIR does. Through Stars & Stripes, I get to lead a team with a shared dedication to creating a better, more equitable world for populations affiliated with the military. We develop and execute AIR’s diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy; we infuse proposals and projects with cultural and linguistic competence; and we foster a values-aligned community within our own workplace.

Can you share one key initiative your ERG has implemented that has made an impact?

In 2024, we renewed our focus on learning from and supporting relevant AIR projects. AIR has a storied history and robust portfolio of military and veteran-affiliated work, including analyses of Post-9/11 GI Bill outcomes, consulting in support of Trauma-Informed Leadership Training, and leading the Integrated Prevention Technical Assistance Center. In building relationships between our ERG and projects, we connect staff with lived experience to researchers and technical assistance providers who can leverage internal assets for higher-quality external deliverables.

How has your involvement in Stars & Stripes influenced your professional development and career at AIR?

As a submarine junior officer, I briefed my commanding officer after every eight-hour watch, trained with my squadron commodore’s oversight every month or two, and met my group commander once in three years. For good reason, the chain of command was long. As Stars & Stripes Chair, conversely, I’m regularly afforded opportunities to speak with AIR’s senior leaders. Representing our passionate staff, I get to advocate for military and veteran initiatives, weigh in on organizational strategy, and partner with other ERG and DEI leaders to meaningfully drive systems change. I’m honored to have a voice at that table and privileged to learn from my bold and brilliant colleagues.

Mary Bridget Burns, Ph.D. | Senior Researcher | Vice Chair

What motivated you to take on a leadership role with Stars & Stripes?

I believe staffing, supporting, and growing ERGs is essential to AIR’s work, as these groups deepen our connections as colleagues and allow staff members to feel supported by the organization on a personal level. I was motivated to get involved because I want to help cultivate a space for all those AIR colleagues who are military affiliated so they can feel seen and heard in a meaningful way. As the spouse of an Air Force veteran and as the aunt, cousin, niece, and friend of active-duty military members and veterans, I know that including military identity as a part of DEI matters.

How can Stars & Stripes address barriers to equity?

The Stars & Stripes ERG addresses the nuances and complexities of equity through discussions about military service and its intersections with gender, socioeconomics, geography, language, and education, among other aspects of life. The Stars & Stripes ERG is one of a few ERGs at AIR that is not focused around aspects of personal identity (such as gender, culture, or religion), but instead is focused on a unique life experience that takes or took place outside of AIR. Our members are veterans, guard and reservists, parents of active duty servicemembers, spouses of active duty and veteran servicemembers. Stars & Stripes also raises the importance of lived experience (professionally, socially, personally, and militarily), providing perspectives to AIR work that might otherwise not be considered, and thus breaking down barriers to equity.

Sean Hartwell | Principal Business Systems Specialist | Social Lead

What motivated you to take on a leadership role with Stars & Stripes, and what have you learned/what is your biggest takeaway?

I cherished my time in the United States Marine Corps and the lifelong friendships that exist to this day. It’s been an honor to be part of the group and to serve in any capacity needed to bring people together.

Can you share one key initiative that your ERG implemented that has made an impact?

I was proud of Sudie Whalen, M.Ed. efforts within our ERG to organize the long-running Care Package Drive for military members. This excellent initiative donates supplies to the “Blue Star Mothers” group in Sacramento, California, to be distributed to service members overseas. We continue to sponsor this effort to improve the morale of our deployed service members and their families.

What is your most memorable experience as a leader, and why does it stand out to you?

Without a doubt, the recent trip to Chicago to interview George Bohrnstedt and submit his story to the Veteran’s History Project was a major highlight. It was fascinating to listen to the arc of his life story, including his experiences ranging from music, his military service, and a lifelong dedication to his work as a highly respected sociologist. I appreciated the support from the DEI office to support this initiative, and how it helped the Stars & Stripes Leadership team come together for such an important occasion.

Zachary Miller | Principal TA Consultant | Documentarian

What motivated you to take on a leadership role with Stars & Stripes, and what have you learned/what is your biggest takeaway?

My affinity for service members motivated me to take on a leadership role in the Stars and Stripes ERG. My father and brother both served in the United States Navy, and other family members served in other branches of the military. Serving on Stars & Stripes’ leadership has kept me informed about the ongoing challenges and opportunities service veterans have in making the transition to a civilian workplace.

What is your most memorable experience as a leader [or member], and why does it stand out to you?

In October, we Stars & Stripes leaders met in Chicago to interview our ERG’s executive sponsor, George Bohrnstedt, about his experiences serving in the Army National Guard. George served in Wisconsin’s 32nd Infantry Division and was one of over 148,000 service members called into service during the Cold War in response to the Soviet Union’s treaty with East Germany and the construction of the Berlin Wall. We will submit George’s interview to the Library of Congress , where it will be archived in the Veteran's History Project collection.