Executive Management Team

​Ruth Day is the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As CIO, she heads up the Commonwealth Office of Technology and is a member of the Governor's executive cabinet.

​Day, a certified public accountant, brings private-sector experience to the Commonwealth Office of Technology (COT). Prior to her appointment, she served as the vice president for administrative services at Landstar System Inc., a transportation services company specializing in logistics.

​​​Deputy Chief Information Officer, Jim Barnhart, assists the organization with IT consolidation, governance and customer relations.

Since beginning his career at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio as a Scientific Technical Assistant, Jim Barnhart has worn many hats. His repertoire includes General Manager, Systems Construction Manager, Systems Manager, Director, Deputy Executive Director and Executive Director. Jim’s extensive IT background and administrative qualities helps lead the ​Commonwealth Office of Technology to perform in a more effective and efficient manner.

​Karen Chrisman serves as the Chief Compliance Officer for Commonwealth Office of Technology. Karen joined government service eight years ago, initially as the staff attorney and privacy officer for the Kentucky Health Information Exchange and then as senior advisor and privacy officer for the Kentucky Department of Medicaid Services. Prior to her state government service, Karen practiced law for 25 years at various locations in the Commonwealth. Karen graduated with a BA and a MA from Eastern Kentucky University, and a JD from the University of Kentucky College of ​Law.

Karen and her husband reside in Frankfort. Their daughter attends Purdue University and their son attends the University of Kentucky.​

​​Stephanie R. Williams serves as the Contracting Officer to the Commonwealth Chief Information Officer and has over 18 years of experience in contracting and procurement. She served as the Purchasing Coordinator for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, Division of Environmental and Emergency Management. She then joined the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Finance and Administration Cabinet, Office of Procurement Services, as a buyer and was promoted to lead as the Assistant Director of the newly established Division of Technology Services Procurement. She also served as a paralegal prior to her governmental experience.

She has a Master of Public Administration Degree from the University of Kentucky, a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in Paralegal Studies from Sullivan University and a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Louisville. She also has a dual nationwide public procurement certification (Certified Public Procurement Officer (CPPO) and Certified Professional Public Buyer (CPPB).

Stephanie is married to Fred Williams (retired Major of the Kentucky State Police and currently serves as the Director of Criminal Justice Studies at Spalding University). ​They have two daughters, Anna and Alayna, and their dog Bleu. They reside in Lawrenceburg but are originally from Louisville.​

​​​​​​​​Kalem Juett serves as the Financial Advisor to the Commonwealth's Chief Information Officer. He manages the Financial Data Management Branch within the Office of the CIO.

Kalem has 22 years of state government experience, where he has served in various capacities including Director of Accounts within the KY Transportation Cabinet, Financial Consultant within the Office of the CIO, and Budget Analyst for the KY Finance and Administration Cabinet.

Kalem graduated from Morehead State University with a degree in Business Administration, and resides in Long Ridge, KY with his wife and two children. 

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The Office of IT Architecture & Governance’s (OIAG) Executive Director, Kari Welch, has served the Commonwealth of Kentucky in several IT roles since joining State Government in 2005. Kari started in the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, moved on to the Kentucky Department of Education, then the Personnel Cabinet before joining COT in 2012 as a System Consultant serving as a system administrator for Exchange, SharePoint and numerous other enterprise applications. Kari has since worked in COT as an Information Systems Manager and Division Director before being appointed to the Executive Director role. Kari has over 20 years of IT experience which includes the private sector and public school system and has performed multiple duties including desktop support, server administration, network operations, application administration, webmaster, data analysis, and IT project leadership. She is a graduate of the Louisville Technical Institute with a degree in Computer Engineering Technology. Kari greatly enjoys assisting agencies in application solutions, modernization, data sharing, integration, and achieving cost savings, as well as finding new and creative ways to solve business and IT problems. Kari resides in Frankfort with her husband and two children. When she’s not at work or spending time with family, she enjoys photography, DIY home-improvement projects, and volunteering for numerous local organizations such as the YMCA, Cinderella’s Closest of Central KY, ​and Distinguished Young Women of Frankfort.​​

​​​​The Office of Infrastructure Services (OIS)​ Executive Director, Rick Woodruff, has more than 20 years of IT experience in government and the private sector (EPA, Ford Motor Company). He holds several technical certifications (ITIL, MS MSCE, Cisco CCNA) and his prior positions range from the technical disciplines to managerial experience at all levels. Rick grew up on the east coast as a self-described “Navy brat” before studying at Georgetown College & Sullivan University. He joined COT in 2005 and lives in Frankfort with his wife. His passions include his wife and daughter (a sophomore at Murray State) and his Christian faith. He also enjoys golf, hiking and ​camping.

David J. Carter, Chief Information Security Officer, has served the Commonwealth of Kentucky in several roles since he joined State Government in 1989. Initially, David was employed as a Child Support Enforcement Specialist with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHR at the time), while attending classes at Cumberland College and Kentucky State University in pre-engineering programs. In 1997 he decided to pursue a new career path in information technology, joining a Frankfort based firm that supported 700 clients located across the United States including many Fortune 1000 companies. After 10 years in the private sector developing skills and knowledge across a wide range of technologies, David returned to State Government in 2007 as the Team Lead in the COT Security Office prior to being promoted to Branch Manager. In 2013 David was appointed as the Deputy Information Security Officer for COT.

David enjoys spending time with friends, family, and most importantly his daughter Madison and his girlfriend Jaci. Always on a quest to learn about new technologies, he enjoys many diverse hobbies such as 3D printing, electronics design and prototyping, and unmanned aerial vehicles. Also enjoying the simpler and less technological things in life, David can occasionally be found by a lake catching the size of fish that any real fisherman would simply call bait, but enjoying it just the same.​​​

The Chief Information Security Office is responsible for IT security ​functions.

The Office of Client Support Services (OCSS) Executive Director, Jennie Duffy has more than 25 years of IT customer experience in government and the private sector. She has served the Commonwealth of Kentucky in many customer service roles since joining State Government in 2002. We strive to provide our customers with quality service, focusing on consistent and efficient support through communication with continuous improvement of processes and customer engagements. The Office of Client Support Services goal is to bring the best customer experience through hardware, software, and IT services. We will provide modernization and standardization of our IT assets with device setup, asset provisioning, application installs, monitoring and maintain the integrity and availability of the Commonwealth's infrastructure and application availability. Jennie enjoys working with each agency to align their IT services with the needs of their business and to continue to improve on our service delivery.​​​​​