Brown CS News

When Brown CS alum Matt Meyer enrolled in his first computer science course at Brown, he never imagined it would shape his approach to governance. Now the newly inaugurated Governor of Delaware, Meyer tells us about his journey from software to public service, highlighting the growing intersection of technology and leadership.

“I still remember taking CS 92 [Educational Software Seminar] with [Thomas J. Watson, Jr. University Professor of Technology and Education and Professor of Computer Science] Andy van Dam, who was on the board of Microsoft back then,” the Governor recalls. “We had to develop a piece of educational software and before we launched it with our target population of students, Professor van Dam came in to test it. I’ll never forget this: he just came in and started banging on my keyboard like a maniac, and within seconds, almost everybody's software broke. And he just looks up and says, ‘Never forget that users almost never follow directions.’”

This lesson in anticipating real-world failures has stayed with Meyer throughout his career. He believes his time at Brown CS contributed to critical thinking skills that have been invaluable and says he feels lucky to have had a nurturing and high-quality learning environment.

“America in some ways can be seen as a huge big data experiment and the individuals holding the most powerful engines of change are often government leaders,” Meyer says. “So it’s important to have someone who can understand big data, can understand how to write a piece of software to come up with a more efficient result for health and education needs.”

Governor Meyer states that Brown CS fostered a comfortable environment around challenging and complex issues of math and technology, giving him the confidence to tackle these issues. He thinks Andy’s teachings, not focused on a specific programming language but centered around a critical way of thinking, helped him figure out many aspects of his governmental work. Meyer believes it would be great for our communities if people with engineering, technical, and mathematical backgrounds were to enter more political spaces. 

“I was in a room just a few months ago with a lot of the nation’s governors and representatives from the leadership of Google’s AI initiative, and one of the governors looked at me and asked, ‘What is this?’” Meyer explains. “That’s a problem. We have to be a country that takes on challenging technologies and leads the world, and sometimes, I feel like I’m in rooms putting together budgets with people who aren’t actually crunching the numbers.”

“As governor, I’m effectively the CEO of the largest employer in the state, and we’re self-insured, meaning we manage our own employee health insurance instead of relying on private insurers,” the Governor explains. “That means we’re constantly analyzing data to identify cost drivers and improve outcomes.”

Meyer revealed that one of the biggest shifts in Delaware has been the rise of obesity drugs like Ozempic, which have made many Americans healthier, but are very expensive. Internal analyses, he says, show that about one-third of people on these medications need them as a matter of life and death, while for the other two-thirds, it’s a question of necessity versus cost.

“If you have someone in government who understands computer science, modeling, and data analysis, you can take a more strategic approach to problems like this,” Meyer says. “The people who understand software and data are the ones best positioned to help solve some of the biggest and most intractable problems facing Delaware and the country.”

Governor Meyer explains that Delaware faces two major challenges. Even though the state has a highly educated population due to several major employers, the public schools consistently rank in the bottom ten nationally. The second problem is healthcare, due to the rapidly growing retiree population putting acute pressure on the system. These challenges were part of Meyer’s motivation to run for governor.

“Beyond those two issues, we’re also dealing with a rapidly changing world in terms of federal policy on education, healthcare, housing, and critical resources for vulnerable populations,” Meyer adds. “The uncertainty at the federal level means that states must be more proactive and self-sufficient in addressing these challenges.”

Meyer states that no matter what one studies at Brown, there are incredible opportunities to engage with communities and contribute to society, and that the most fulfilling experiences he’s had were when he used his education, skills, and networks to serve others.

“I saw this firsthand while working as a diplomat in Iraq. By the end of that experience, I was surrounded by incredibly smart and dedicated people, but I constantly felt like I was juggling too many responsibilities and questioning whether I was making a difference,” Governor Meyer states. “What I realized is that no matter what field you’re in, you have tremendous value to offer. Sometimes, it’s about applying what you’ve learned at Brown and paying it forward.”

“We’re working to protect fundamental freedoms, ensuring that Delaware remains a place where people have access to quality education, healthcare, and economic opportunity and feel confident that their government is working for them, solving real problems, and setting the foundation for a better future,” Meyer says. “Public service, at its best, is about taking the knowledge and skills you’ve gained and using them to help others.”

Brown CS regularly publishes news articles about our pioneering and innovative alums. We have no financial involvement in any of the people or organizations mentioned above and have not been compensated in any way for this story. The views and opinions expressed above are those of individuals, and do not necessarily state or reflect those of Brown CS, nor does their publication here constitute an endorsement of them.

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