Overview

August 16

Mid-sized local governments report that staff shortages and a lack of data literacy are their biggest challenges when it comes to data governance.

This is just one takeaway from a recent Center for Digital Government survey looking at data governance policies, tools, and challenges in mid-sized cities and counties.

Join Government Technology on August 16 at 11 a.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Eastern as we unpack results from the survey and discuss best practices for data governance.

Speakers

Michael Hojnicki

Chief of Technology & Administrative Services, New Castle County, DE

Michael is the Chief of Technology and Administrative Services for New Castle County Delaware. In his current role, he leads the digital transformation efforts that leverage technology to improve overall efficiencies. Michael and his award-winning team support the technology, cybersecurity, and data protection for the entirety of NCC government operations, including finance, human resources, and the Department of Public Safety. Michael is also responsible for technology audits, compliance management, and the management and oversight of procurement for NCC. Michael retired from the State of Delaware after 25 years of service in Information Technology, is an active volunteer firefighter and instructor with the State of Delaware Fire School and an adjunct faculty member at Wilmington University.

Sarah VanWormer

Technology Director, City of Brentwood, TN

Sarah VanWormer joined the City of Brentwood as the Technology Director in January 2022 from the City of Battle Creek, Michigan where she spent more than 20 years in the Information Technology Department. In Battle Creek, she and her team supported 34 city departments for IT needs. She was responsible for developing a $2.3 million dollar charge back model for maintaining and replacing city-wide IT, GIS, and 311 information center infrastructure. Sarah's area of expertise lies in data, programming, and addressing gaps in business needs. In Brentwood, Sarah has similar responsibilities and tasks. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland Baltimore County with a Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Environmental Systems. She also has a master’s degree in Information Systems.

Bill Rials

Senior Fellow, Center for Digital Government

William (Bill) Rials, Ph.D., is a professor and associate director (department chair) of the Tulane University School of Professional Advancement IT and Cybersecurity Program, where he focuses on continually delivering and updating the program curriculum based on innovative and emerging technologies. Before transitioning to academia and higher education, he had a diverse gov tech career delivering value to state agencies, local governments, and law enforcement agencies throughout the state of Mississippi. He has served in CIO, CTO, and CISO roles for local governments and also in various leadership positions within the state of Mississippi’s IT organization as a deputy to the state CIO. Dr. Rials holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Belhaven University, a master’s degree in computer information systems and cybersecurity from Missouri State University, as well as a Ph.D. in higher education administration and public administration from Jackson State University. His dissertation research involved the critical factors that affect the adoption of cloud services within the public sector. He is a noted expert in the IT and cybersecurity space and is frequently quoted by national media outlets. He is also a frequent contributor to national IT government organizations such as NASTD and NASCIO.

Teri Takai — Moderator

Senior Vice President, Center for Digital Government

Teri Takai is the Senior Vice President of the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government. She worked for Ford Motor Company for 30 years in global application development and information technology strategic planning. From Ford, she moved to EDS in support of General Motors. A long-time interest in public service led her to the government sector, first as CIO of the State of Michigan, then as CIO of the State of California, and subsequently the CIO of the U.S. Department of Defense, the first woman appointed to this role. She then served as the CIO for Meridian Health Plan. She is a member of several industry advisory boards.

Webinar

Diving Deep on Data Governance in Local Government