Ryan Johnson

Now I live outside of Portland, Oregon and I'm a content strategist with the General Services Administration. My role is to help government teams consistently deliver and maintain clear, accessible, user-centered content. Depending on the project, that can involve plain-language content design, testing content with users, developing taxonomies and metadata, establishing workflow and governance processes, or some combination of all of those. In addition to my federal service, I also serve as a volunteer with my local search and rescue team.

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After college, I joined AmeriCorps, which sparked a passion for and commitment to public service. My belief in the importance of public service has only grown since then, and I’ve been fortunate to observe the positive impacts of public service at multiple levels of government. Making it easier for someone to exercise their rights or access the services they deserve continues to motivate me, while the hard work and dedication of the public servants around me continues to inspire.

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As a public servant, almost every project is an opportunity to have a meaningful, positive, demonstrable impact on someone’s life. Public service is rarely easy, but it’s definitely fulfilling. One of the most fulfilling projects in my career has been working with the Department of Justice on the updated ADA.gov website while I was working at 18F. It’s difficult to overstate the life-changing impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which protects people with disabilities from discrimination. The public servants at the Disability Rights Section of the Department of Justice are among the most dedicated, inspiring people I’ve met in my career. Our work made the website itself more accessible, and we designed it with—not for—the community.

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