U.S. Air Force Judge Advo­cate Rena Winick Weinstein wasn’t quite sure what she want­ed to do with her life when she graduated high school.

As an Orthodox Jew, Weinstein was certain of one thing: She wanted to go to college in a place that would support her religious lifestyle—and help her find her professional path. So, she enrolled at the Lander College for Women –The Anna Ruth and Mark Hasten School, a part of the Touro Uni­versity System, designed to help observant Jews get an education without compromising their reli­gious values.

At Touro, Weinstein, now 25, ended up finding the spark for her unconventional career. She dabbled in a variety of pursuits after grad­uating, including selling real es­tate and learning Arabic, before deciding to study law at George­town University. She eventually landed a job in the U.S. Air Force as an attorney known as a JAG, or judge advocate general.

“It was very helpful for me, now that I’m in an environment where there’s very little religion, to have that foundation of strong aca­demics and a strong religious environment while in college,” Weinstein said, reflecting on her experience. “That was the cushion that allowed me to branch off into the secular world.”

These days Weinstein, who re­cently married, works at a fighter jet base in England, where she’s chief of international and oper­ational law, dealing with issues ranging from NATO readiness to military court martials.

“I’ve always been patriotic, so I felt it was important to show appreciation for the gifts we’ve received as Jews in America by joining the military,” said Wein­stein, who previously spent a year and a half at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas with the 22nd Air Refueling Wing. “I wanted to do more than sitting around at a think tank, talking about patrio­tism and values.”