Overview

December 3
11AM PT, 2PM ET

Register

AI has moved quickly from emerging technology to a priority for state and local governments. But for many agencies, the biggest challenge is no longer understanding what AI could do — it’s determining where to start, how to overcome barriers, and how to turn promising ideas into meaningful long-term results for constituents and communities.

Join Government Technology for AI in Action, a virtual summit focused on how governments are putting AI to work today. Hear directly from public sector leaders who are using AI to solve real problems, simplify government operations and deliver better experiences for the people they serve.

This summit will cover:

  • Inspiring stories from public sector leaders who are putting AI into action — what they’ve accomplished, how they got started and what they learned along the way
  • How agencies are navigating common barriers such as limited resources, budgets and internal buy-in
  • How to identify achievable starting points and build momentum for broader AI adoption

Whether your organization is exploring its first AI use case or looking for ways to expand existing efforts, this summit will give you practical ideas and examples to move from possibility to action.

Speakers

Dan Yopchick headshot

Dan Yopchick

Chief Communications Officer, Village of Oak Park, Illinois

Dan Yopchick was named Chief Communications Officer in October 2022. Prior to arriving at the Village, Yopchick served as Senior Associate Athletic Director of Strategic Communications with the University of Illinois Chicago. His 15-year communications career prior to coming to Oak Park also included communications roles with Northwestern University, the Chicago White Sox and the Bakersfield Blitz.

Marcus Townsend, CGDSP headshot

Marcus Townsend, CGDSP

Solutions Architect, Information Technology, City of Fayetteville, North Carolina

Marcus Townsend is the Solutions Architect for the City of Fayetteville, North Carolina, where he has worked in various Information Technology and Communication Departments roles for more than twenty years. After earning his Certified Government Digital Service Professional (CGDSP) in 2019, he was chosen by the Fayetteville Observer for their 40 under 40 award, recognizing him as one of the area's top business professionals and community leaders for his work serving the community and sharing his talent with various Non-profits.

Passionate about technology and accessibility, Marcus joined the NAGW board in 2020 filling the vacant position of East Regional Director. In his spare time, Marcus can be likely found tuning a wrench on his mustang or shooting a game of 9 ball.

Sean McSpaden headshot

Sean McSpaden — Moderator

Sr. Fellow, Center for Digital Government

Sean McSpaden is an executive level information technology professional with over 30 years of experience in the private, non-profit, and public sectors. His background includes the start-up and management of several small businesses and he has served on the Board of Directors or in Executive Director positions for several 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. Sean’s public service experience includes progressively responsible positions as an IT analyst, and in statewide coordination, management and leadership positions within the Executive and Legislative branches of Oregon state government.

From June 2008 to September 2013, Sean served as the state of Oregon’s Deputy State Chief Information Officer. Since 2013, Sean has served as a Principal Legislative IT Analyst with the Oregon Legislative Fiscal Office and as the Committee Administrator for Oregon’s Joint Legislative Committee on Information Management and Technology. In addition, Sean serves as a member Oregon’s Task Force on Artificial Intelligence and as Oregon’s representative to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Taskforce on Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Privacy.

Throughout his 26-year tenure in Oregon state government, Sean and the teams he has led have received several state, regional and national recognitions and awards. In addition, Sean has represented the state of Oregon on numerous state, regional and national project steering committees, task forces, governing boards, committees, commissions and associations, and has presented on various topics at local, state, regional, national, and international meetings and conferences.

Sean earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree and Certificate of Public Management from the Willamette University, Atkinson Graduate School of Management. Sean is an ISACA Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) and holds a PMI Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.

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