Our Project Rusty Team
Jean Kanokogi, PhD - Chief Executive Officer
​
Jean Kanokogi, Ph.D. is a Senior Special Agent for the U.S. Government with extensive experience in conducting criminal investigations. With a career spanning 23 years in law enforcement, Jean has been the lead investigator on several high-profile cases, including the attacks on 9/11 and many that focus on protecting public health.
​
Jean is a 6th degree black belt in judo and a highly respected sensei. She was on the U.S. national judo team, now known as USA Judo, and won several medals in international tournaments. Most notably, Jean was one of the original signers of the American Civil Liberty Union suit to fight for women’s rights in the sport of judo.
Jean is the co-author of her mother’s story, Get Up & Fight: the memoir of Rusty Kanokogi, The Mother of Women’s Judo. She has authored numerous mental health and law enforcement related articles in various professional publications and also publishes a column in the Eighteen Eleven, the professional Journal of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), with a readership of over 36,000. One of her treasured experiences includes consulting on the television program “Law and Order, Special Victim’s Unit.”
She dedicates her time as a volunteer for the FLEOA where she is the Director of Mental Health and Peer Support Services. In this monumental role, she is building a peer support program to support the mental health of the federal law enforcement community. Additionally, this role allows her to comment on bipartisan bills that directly impact the mental health of law enforcement officers.
Additional philanthropic work includes mentoring high-risk youths and serving on the evaluation committee for the Rusty Kanokogi Fund for the Advancement of U.S. Judo. Managed by the Women’s Sports Foundation, this annual scholarship provides financial support for women in judo nationwide who are training for national and international competition.
Jean holds a B.S. and M.A. from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and earned her Ph.D. in the study of psychology in 2018, where she published her dissertation, entitled, “The Interrogation Experiences that Transition Novices from Beginners to Experts.” Her tenacity and courage to continue to deliver on positively impacting societal behaviors is truly an inspiration for all.
​
Carrie Lloyd - Director of Operations
​
Title IX is a movement dear to Carrie’s heart, as she received an athletic scholarship to attend St. Joseph’s University through her contributions to their Division I softball program. Graduating with a Bachelor of Science in marketing, Carrie also received a scholar athlete award for balancing athletic excellence with maintaining a high GPA. Being the first person of her family to graduate from university has entrenched a passion and devotion to her current role with Project Rusty.
Carrie’s career includes 13 years as a manager in commercial construction overseeing large-scale projects from conception to completion. Projects of note include: support facilities at the recovery efforts at Ground Zero, affectionately referred to as the “Taj Mahal” by recovery workers; 105,000-square-foot port facility at Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Holland; 70,000-square-foot facility at Dover Air Force Base supporting our global fight against terrorism.
In addition, Carrie has managed sales teams for major corporations as well as served as a senior lead on several major marketing campaigns. Carrie is an active member of the Society of Military Engineers and the Construction Specification Institute, and also gives back by contributing time to Habitat for Humanity and Cancer Support Communities, supporting children of active duty reservists and volunteering at local animal shelters.
Ryohei Kanokogi, 9TH Dan - Consultant
​
Sensei Kanokogi was born and raised in Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto, Kyushu Japan. He was born of samurai ancestry. The samurai lineage of Kanokogi were known as intelligent fighters’ adept with swords. Their reputation was unusual, as they preferred to conciliate conflict rather than fight, and were known for saving lives.
Kanokogi is a skilled judoka and a former all weights Judo Champion of Southeastern Japan. Kanokogi is also a skilled champion of karate and jiu-jitsu. He graduated with a business degree at Nihon University and was a member of their judo team. Kanokogi was a coach for the Japanese Judo team for the 1964 Summer Olympics and later immigrated to the United States to continue teaching judo.
As a highly respected sensei of martial arts in the United States, he is well known for teaching highly technical judo skills and judo principles and philosophy to his students. Kanokogi Sensei has touched thousands of lives through his instruction at the Merchant Marine Academy, Kyushu Dojo and several schools throughout the country. Along with his wife, Rusty, he was influential in the acceptance of women in judo into the Olympics.
Kanokogi also played a role in several movies such as Carlito’s Way, The Goodbye Girl, The Avengers, Up in Smoke and Blue in the Face, and award-winning commercials for Samsonite, Hai Karate aftershave and Fresca. Most notable, Kanokogi Sensei was awarded the coveted 9th degree black belt in 2018 for his extensive contributions to the sport of judo.