Heinz Graduate Matthew Yurkunas Is Bringing AI Literacy to Pennsylvania State Government

Matthew Yurkunas (AIM '26) knew when he started his computer science degree at Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania in Bloomsburg that he didn’t want to be a software developer. What he did want was to stay close to artificial intelligence and machine learning as both fields were taking off, and to find a role where he could think about the technology rather than just build with it.

That desire led him to Heinz College, where he enrolled in the Master of Science in AI Systems Management program as part of its inaugural cohort. He graduated in July 2026 and is now a Pennsylvania Governor's Science and Technology Fellow, placed with the Department of General Services in Harrisburg.

Finding Where the AI Actually Helps

The fellowship placed Yurkunas across two bureaus within the department: procurement and real estate. His fellowship focuses on identifying opportunities for responsible AI adoption and strengthening AI literacy across the department. While the role has established objectives, it also provides the flexibility to collaborate with staff, explore emerging needs, and determine the most effective ways to support the agency’s goals.

In practice, that means a lot of conversations. Yurkunas meets regularly with staff across both bureaus to understand how their work actually gets done, where the friction is, and whether AI is the right tool to address it.

"Rather than walking into a room and asking where we can apply AI, I try to understand what a process looks like and just point out normal pain points," Yurkunas said, "and ask the question, Is AI even something that we want to solve this problem with?"

He runs monthly office hours and training seminars for staff across the Department of General Services. The sessions are shaped by what Yurkunas hears in those one-on-one conversations, what people are already doing with AI, what they do not understand about it, and where they want more guidance.

The audience, he notes, arrives with both experience and opinions. Many of the people he works with have been in state government for years and have watched technology continuously evolve. AI feels different to a lot of them, Yurkunas said, partly because of how it gets covered in the media and marketed to consumers.

"AI is this whole new beast,” Yurkunas said. “It's nice that I'm able to sit down and be that trusted source that somebody can ask a question and know that I'm not giving them some inflated answer or some skeptical answer that they have to research."

Learning to Navigate Uncertainty

Two things stand out when Yurkunas talks about what he gained in the AIM program. The first is technical fluency. His education gave him a broad understanding of AI concepts and technologies, allowing him to engage confidently in technical discussions across a wide range of topics. The second, and the one he comes back to often, is comfort with ambiguity.

Several projects at Heinz College, including his capstone, challenged Yurkunas to navigate changing requirements, collaborate with stakeholders, and solve open-ended problems. These experiences strengthened his adaptability and independent problem-solving skills, which he now applies in his fellowship.

"Sometimes the projects we got were very vague or loosely defined, and it was up to us as students to come up with solutions,” Yurkunas said. “That's exactly what I do every day in my role right now."

While his fellowship has established goals and priorities, Yurkunas is given the flexibility to determine how best to achieve them. This approach allows him to work collaboratively across the department, identify opportunities for meaningful AI adoption, and develop approaches that align with the agency.

Yurkunas credits his “Intro to Artificial Intelligence” course, which he took with Professor David Steier, as excellent preparation for his current work. Yurkunas particularly valued the focus on developing a breadth of knowledge. That approach gave him a working vocabulary across a wide range of AI concepts before any of the more advanced courses asked him to go deep on any one of them.

"Intro to AI is the course that gives you all the lingo," he said. "You have a general idea of how things work, just enough so that when you move into the next level of classes, you've already heard of it."

Advice for Current Students

Yurkunas graduated into a job market that has been uncertain for many technical fields, and into a broader environment that has made public-sector AI work more complicated than it was a few years ago. His message to others, though, is about staying true to themselves. 

"Just keep doing what your heart tells you to do," he said. "Follow your passions and don't try to chase the achievements of somebody else. Focus on what drives you and makes you excited."