NCBFAA welcomes Whittenburg as NEI Associate Director

Cynthia Whittenburg joins the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) Educational Institute (NEI) as Associate Director to promote and enhance the knowledge base and professionalism within this dynamic industry.

NEI expects to benefit from Whittenburg's decades of experience with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), where she served in senior roles in trade oversight. Prior to her retirement earlier this year, she was Deputy Executive Assistant Commissioner in CBP's Office of Trade in Washington, D.C.

"I am so excited about the opportunity to add value to this association with such a rich history of educating and empowering those who are the engines of U.S. trade activity," Whittenburg said.

NEI provides educational opportunities to the members of NCBFAA and the larger trade community in the areas of international trade, supply chain management, global logistics, customs brokerage, export transactions, transportation, attendant government regulation, and those areas of knowledge necessary to manage or advance a career path in a business providing services to those sectors.

"Cynthia will assist in expanding the delivery of our content though institutions of higher learning as well as other appropriate avenues as well as assist in the development of additional courses needed to continue our mission," said NEI Executive Director Kiko Zuniga. "Some of these courses will deal with current issues such as forced labor, USMCA, to name a few."

At CBP's Office of Trade, Whittenburg drove key enforcement strategies over priority trade areas including antidumping and countervailing duties, intellectual property rights, import safety, textiles, broker compliance, forced labor, and trade agreements.

She joined CBP 33 years ago as an import specialist in the Port of New Orleans. Since that time, her experiences include serving as a course developer/instructor at the CBP Field Operations Academy - Federal Law Enforcement Training Center; National Account Manager; Branch Chief of Entry, Summary and Drawback; Division Director for Trade Facilitation and Administration; and Director of ACE Business Transformation. Her executive experience with the Department of Homeland Security also includes two six-month temporary assignments as Acting Executive Director for CBP's Budget Office and Acting Deputy Federal Security Director at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport for the Transportation Security Administration.

While working for CBP, Whittenburg served 24 years in the U.S. Army Reserve and Army National Guard. She also a graduate of Dillard University with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science/Business and has earned a Master's Degree in Public Administration from Georgia Southern University. Additionally, she graduated from the Department of Homeland Security Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program in 2013 and completed the Senior Managers in Government course at Harvard Kennedy School of Government in 2016. She is currently pursuing a Master's in Legal Studies, International Business Law, at University of Oklahoma.

"I am thrilled to welcome Cynthia Whittenburg to NCBFAA on our NEI team," said NCBFAA President Janet Fields. "I've always admired Cynthia and her polished, professional and educated outlook at Customs and I look forward to working with her as we continue to grow the NEI."