Governor Abbott Appoints Eight To Public Sector Artificial Intelligence Systems Advisory Board

TEXAS, November 6 - November 6, 2025 | Austin, Texas | Appointment

Governor Greg Abbott appointed Heather Hall, Ph.D., Sylvia Hernandez Kauffman, Tina McLeod, Anh Selissen, Ronald Steffa, David Bolduc, Jaclyn Beerens, and Josh Chacona to the Public Sector Artificial Intelligence Systems Advisory Board for terms set to expire on September 1, 2027.

Heather Hall, Ph.D. of Austin is the chief information officer at the Texas Workforce Commission. She is the president of the Texas Association for Strategic Solutions and Collaboration in Computing (TASSCC), member of the State Agency Coordinating Committee, IT Subcommittee, member of the Project Management Institute, and the Austin Colony chapter registrar for the Daughters of the American Revolution. Hall received a Bachelor of Arts in Latin from Baylor University, a Master of Science in Library and Information Science from The University of Texas (UT) at Austin, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Information Science from the University of North Texas.

Sylvia Hernandez Kauffman of Austin is the chief information officer of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHS). She previously served as Inspector General for HHS and held other leadership roles at the agency. Prior to entering public service, she was a software development leader at Exxon Company, USA. Kauffman received a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Stanford University and a Master of Science in Public Policy from Harvard University.

Tina McLeod of Austin is the chief information officer for the Texas Office of the Attorney General. She previously worked as deputy director of IT applications at Texas Health and Human Services. She is a former Austin Women in Technology advisory board member. McLeod received a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science from UT Austin.

Anh Selissen of Pflugerville is the chief information officer for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). She has led the agency's information technology division since September 2019. She previously worked as deputy chief information officer for the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Selissen received a Bachelor of Science in Geology from Baylor University and a Master of Science in Geoscience from Michigan Technological University.

Ronald Steffa of Huntsville is the chief financial officer for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ). He previously served as deputy chief financial officer and director of contracts and procurement at TDCJ. He is a deacon and Sunday school teacher at University Heights Baptist Church. Steffa received a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master of Business Administration from Sam Houston State University.

David Bolduc of Austin is the agency head and public counsel at the Office of the Public Insurance Counsel. Previously, he served as the deputy public counsel for OPIC, as an attorney for the Office of Policy Development Counsel for the Texas Department of Insurance, as general counsel for the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, as a division chief in the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, and as deputy general counsel at the Texas Department of Agriculture. He has over 49 years of legal experience in government and private practice. Bolduc received a Bachelor of Arts in Government from Bowdoin College and a Juris Doctor from UT School of Law.

Jaclyn Beerens of Austin is the vice president of consulting services at CGI. She is a former advisory board member for the TASSCC and a former board member for Healthier Texas. Beerens received a Bachelor of Science in Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Josh Chacona of Austin is a regional vice president of solution engineering at Snowflake. He previously worked as a sales engineer at Oracle and National Instruments. Prior to those roles, he was a manufacturing process engineer a Scapa North America. Chacona received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from California State University.