January 2024 NCSEA CSQ

inter-jurisdictional; and (3) the program’s core is secure data
management.
At first, it was just a possibility of a hearing, so I did my best to
get some other stuff done. By the Tuesday before Thanksgiving,
it was pretty clear that the hearing was going to happen, so I
asked myself how I would explain this complicated issue to my own
legislature and started typing. After stealing as much time as I could to
work on my testimony while hosting Thanksgiving, I shared my draft with
folks from NTCSA, NCSEA, and NCCSD on Sunday afternoon. They
gave me some great feedback very quickly so I could submit my
testimony by the deadline of 48 hours before the hearing. After hitting
“send” on the written remarks, I started reading my testimony out loud
and removing material until I could get my verbal remarks in under five
minutes. It was a tough editing task, but it prepared me well for the
hearing.
What made you more nervous beforehand–developing and delivering
your prepared remarks? Or the Q&A? Was it easier or more difficult
than you imagined?
I really did not have enough time to prepare. Also, one of the
questions I was asked I had heard before. But when I was asked
the question, it became intertwined with a different question. I
was uncertain what the representative was trying to ask of me, and it
was hard for me to answer.
Before I served as OCSS commissioner, I had a long career as
a national policy advocate. I spent a lot of time on the hill and
had previously worked on legislation with a few of the Committee
Members. I’ve testified about 25 times before Congressional and state
committees. But the last time I testified before a Congressional
committee was more than 13 years ago, and I have turned down most
public speaking requests since leaving OCSS. I am shy, to begin with,
and I was nervous that I was out of practice and that my public speaking
skills were rusty. But once I got started, I was comfortable. Q & A is
always a wild card, but I had tried to prepare for questions ahead of
time.