Meet the StateRAMP Team

by Taylor Webster

As the StateRAMP team evolves, we want to re-introduce ourselves to government principals, cybersecurity innovators, and private sector leaders. Get to know the StateRAMP team below and find a list of upcoming conferences where you can meet StateRAMP representatives in-person. View our Board of Directors and Standing Committees here.

StateRAMP Management Team

Executive Director, Leah McGrath

Serving as the Executive Director, Leah McGrath has been involved with StateRAMP since its formation. In 2020, she spent countless hours working alongside Steering Committee members to develop StateRAMP’s governance and policy framework. Prior to her work with StateRAMP, McGrath held leadership positions in both the public and private sector, including serving as the first deputy mayor of the City of Fishers, Indiana. During her tenure, Fishers transformed from a town into a smart, vibrant, entrepreneurial city and was named the #1 Best Place to Live in America in 2017 by Money magazine. As deputy mayor, she helped lead modernization efforts and spearheaded city-wide efforts to develop the city’s first long-range, comprehensive plan. McGrath’s 20-year career has been focused on working to improve government outcomes at the state and local level, helping shepherd government into the digital age securely and effectively for the citizens it serves. Connect with Leah!

Chief of Operations, Jessica Van Eerde

Jessica Van Eerde is StateRAMP’s Chief of Operations, where she passionately represents and supports StateRAMP’s mission and its members. A seasoned leader with over a decade of experience working with State and Local Governments, as well as in the realm of Higher Education, Jessica brings a wealth of knowledge to her role. Her expertise spans various domains, including law, procurement, and professional development. Notably, Jessica plays a pivotal role in the leadership of the TX-RAMP StateRAMP partnership, driving initiatives that optimize cybersecurity tools and resources for State, Local, and Education (SLED) organizations nationwide. Her dedication to advancing cybersecurity excellence is reflected in her strategic leadership and commitment to forging impactful collaborations. Connect with Jessica!

Government Engagement Director – Adoption Consultant, Stacey Carswell

As the Government Engagement Director for the northeast region at StateRAMP, Stacey helps participating governments adopt StateRAMP by providing guidance on process improvement, change management, and cybersecurity education. Stacey has over a decade of experience in government procurement and policy development. She continues to support public servants through education and policy development. Connect with Stacey!

 

Government Engagement Director – Strategic Relations, Chance Grubb

Chance Grubb serves as our Government Engagement Director, focusing on strategic relations. Chance possesses over 17 years of state government experience in procurement, information technology and cybersecurity. The State of Oklahoma used his expertise to establish a vendor management program, share cyber threat intelligence through the OK-ISAC, and mature a third-party security program. Connect with Chance!

 

Government Engagement Director – Education, Rebecca Kee

Rebecca Kee serves our government members as the Government Engagement Director, focusing on the integration of StateRAMP into education processes and policies. Prior to joining the StateRAMP team, Rebecca served as Chief Procurement Officer and Purchasing Agent for the City of Virginia Beach, Virginia. She has 18 years of experience in the public procurement field and has worked extensively to develop, create, and support educational programs and opportunities for the profession. Rebecca has served as Director of Procurement for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and as the Assistant Purchasing Agent for Arlington County, Virginia. In addition, she served as an adjunct faculty at Arkansas State University. Rebecca has served in multiple NIGP roles and maintains her NIGP-CPP, CPPO and CPPB certifications. Connect with Rebecca!

Membership Development & Engagement Manager, Olivia Maple

Olivia Maple is our Membership Development & Engagement Manager who specializes in building strong relationships and curating efficient processes. Driven by creativity and communication, she takes pride in cultivating the best client experience possible. Olivia is an experienced and goal-oriented innovator with a passion for connecting with others. She graduated from Indiana University, Bloomington in 2022 with a BA in Apparel Merchandising and Marketing. When Olivia isn’t collaborating with colleagues, she can be found enjoying the outdoors with a dog by her side. Connect with Olivia!

Brand Marketing Manager, Taylor Webster

Taylor Webster serves as StateRAMP’s Brand Marketing Manager. She possesses over 5 years of experience in multiple B2B marketing disciplines, including the public and private sector. Her passion is helping businesses identify market trends and customer needs, leveraging marketing channels in an effort to foster brand loyalty and boost visibility. Taylor holds Content Creation and Salesforce certifications. She graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 2021, with a BBA in Marketing. When Taylor’s not creating, she can be found doing something active with her dog or traveling. Connect with Taylor!

StateRAMP PMO (Program Management Office)

Services Provided by Knowledge Services through PMO Charter Agreement.

Executive Advisor to StateRAMP PMO, Fred Brittain

Fred Brittain is an experienced and innovative Information Security and IT leader who served as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the State of Maine from 2019 to 2023. Prior to joining the state government, he spent 25 years with the University of Maine system, where he rose from leading IT for a single campus to becoming the associate CIO for the entire system. As the CIO of Maine, he was responsible for overseeing the State’s IT policies, infrastructure, cybersecurity, accessibility, and service management. He also led several initiatives to improve the state’s digital capabilities, such as increasing web traffic, enhancing online services, and bringing the State through the pandemic while still providing best in class services to the people of Maine. He was recognized as one of the Top 25 Doers, Dreamers, and Drivers by Government Technology magazine in 2023 for his achievements and vision. After leaving the state government, he joined Knowledge Services as the Vice President of Information Security in August 2023, where he continues to apply his expertise and passion for information security to improve the cyber posture of cloud service providers at the national level. Fred Brittain holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics and Computer Science. He is also an avid cyclist and skier living with his family in a log cabin in rural Maine. Connect with Fred!

PMO Director, Noah Brown, CISSP-ISSMP, CEH, CCSP

Noah has 10 years of experience in the information security field, helping companies design and implement programs and initiatives that improve their cyber security posture. In his role at Knowledge Services, which has an agreement with StateRAMP to serve as the StateRAMP Program Management Office (PMO), Noah helped launch the StateRAMP PMO Review Process in 2021, designing controls, templates, and guidance.  He also serves as an advisor to the StateRAMP Standards and Technical Committee. He is passionate about helping companies achieve meaningful security for those they serve. Additionally, Noah serves in the Indiana Army National Guard as a member of the Defensive Cyber Operations Element (DCO-E) where he has helped modernize the defensive team’s functions, processes, and reporting. In this role, he has mentored team members on audit and incident response processes in real-world applications and during his past employment with the Department of Defense, he successfully conducted compliance package build and audit inspection preparations for NIST RMF, DIACAP and FISMA. Connect with Noah!

PMO Advisor, David Resler

David serves as one of StateRAMP’s PMO Directors, responsible for PMO operations and the implementation of StateRAMP Revision 5. He also serves as the Corporate Information Security Director for Knowledge Services, which provides the StateRAMP Program Management Office (PMO) staff. Prior to joining StateRAMP, David oversaw the IT Security, Data Center, and Networking groups for 14 years at Performance Assessment Network and its successor organization, PSI Services. There, David managed the NIST 800-53 compliance program and supported multiple Federal organizations including TSA, CBP, FAMS, FFDO-D, FBI, DEA, and FAA.  David holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer and Electronics Technology from Indiana State University and has over thirty years of experience in Information Technology. He is a member of the Executive Advisory Board for the Eleven Fifty Academy serving on the Cyber Security Committee. David is also one of the hosts of the monthly StateRAMP Office Hours webcast. Connect with David!

PMO Manager, Julia Miller

Julia is the StateRAMP Program Management Office (PMO) Manager. She is responsible for overseeing and managing the implementation of various StateRAMP initiatives, such as Security Package Reviews, Annual Assessments, Continuous Monitoring, and the StateRAMP Security Snapshot program. Before joining StateRAMP, Julia spent 20 years leading various projects in Information Security and IT Risk and Compliance. She gained 12 years of experience at Navient where she oversaw multiple federal contracts related to NIST SP 800-53 security compliance controls. Julia also spearheaded security projects across the entire organization, managed PCI DSS compliance, and conducted audits of third-party vendors. She holds a Risk and Information Systems Control® (CRISC®) certification. Additionally, Julia enjoys biking and traveling. Connect with Julia!

Find Us This Year

If you see a StateRAMP representative at a conference this year, please reach out! We value the feedback and input from our StateRAMP community.

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