Brian Jenkins ’16

Brian Jenkins became the executive director of the Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP) at age 24. Five years later, he has grown ASAP to become the nation’s largest military arts organization, and he has earned a place on the 2024 Forbes 30 Under 30 list for his leadership.

Brian credits his broad liberal arts education and his work building community through a student service organization at W&M with preparing him for diverse leadership roles. After graduating in 2016, he worked with international media clients and nonprofits as a consultant in 35 countries over two years. When the founder of ASAP, Sam Pressler '15, stepped down, he reached out to Brian and suggested he might be a good fit to take on the position. He applied and became executive director in June 2019.

ASAP addresses social isolation and mental health challenges among the veteran and military population via free, evidence-based arts classes. From stand-up comedy and storytelling to flameworking and spraypainting, ASAP programs foster a creative community where veterans and their families thrive through the arts. It has served more than 4,000 individuals in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and five countries. At W&M, ASAP has collaborated with the Veteran-to-Executive (VET) Flourishing Through Life Transitions certificate program, which helps veterans transition to high-level civilian management positions through a holistic approach.

Learn more about Brian

• Read his profile in the W&M Alumni Magazine.
• Watch his W&M Professional Development Week webinar, Modern Leadership: Strategies for Inspirational Team Management.
• Check out ASAP’s website to see what the organization is doing for the veteran community.