Stephanie Dedmon, Tennessee’s CIO of Six Years, Will Retire

Tennessee’s longtime chief information officer has announced her retirement next year. “After almost 20 years of service with the state of Tennessee, Stephanie Dedmon has decided to retire, effective July 2025, to spend more time with her family,” Gina L. Long, director of communications for the Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration, told in an email Friday.

The state for the senior-level position, with Monday set as the closing date. in October 2018 and leads the (STS) division of the Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration. Prior to becoming CIO, she was deputy CIO for nearly three years, working with then-CIO Mark Bengel as the state embarked on a number of technology consolidation and modernization efforts.



That work has continued, with recent projects including overhauling the unemployment insurance system and health record projects. As with many states and public-sector agencies, Tennessee is exploring how and when to use artificial intelligence-enabled technology, developing policies to govern the use of AI while minimizing risks to systems. “Our role from a central IT standpoint is a fine line between progressing innovation and strategy,” Dedmon told Ashley Silver earlier this year, characterizing the timing as “early in our AI journey.

” Cybersecurity remains an all-consuming issue for STS, and one to which Dedmon has remained devoted. She has advocated for more collaboration and partnerships with local government and others, to better understand risks and strategies for improvement. With cyber roles remaining challenging to fill, Dedmon the state has created a cybersecurity internship funded by federal American Rescue Plan Act money.

It has proven, she said, “a beneficial way for us to bring in college students who are pursuing cybersecurity careers, and exposing them to still-exciting work that we're doing in the state.” Dedmon, who served as president of the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) , is currently one of its 10 Executive Committee directors..