Tai Istre
Administration Strategy & Planning Director
Encountering the human story in data sets a platform for strategy.
Meet Tai
Tai Istre is the Director of OTS Administration Strategy & Planning, where she hopes to leverage her passion for data to evaluate technology services. With background in applied research and program evaluation, Tai brings a unique, applied research-focused approach to program administration and analytics.
How She Started
Like many leaders in the Office of Technology Services (OTS), Tai’s journey didn’t start in information technology, but in the field of psychology. After earning her Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Louisiana State University, her early career focused on applied research, clinical practice, and analysis. This background taught her how to collect, analyze, and interpret complex data to understand human patterns and drive meaningful outcomes.
Tai first leveraged these skills in a Senior Researcher role for LSU’s Office of Social Service Research & Development. In that role, she specializing in data analysis to evaluate and manage social service programs statewide such as the early intervention Truancy Assessment and Service Centers.
Tai’s impact became larger in scope following Hurricane Katrina. She took on a crucial leadership role at the Louisiana Family Recovery Corps, directing data analysis and reporting for what became the largest disaster case management program in U.S. history. Her work was hands-on, designing a statewide online information system to coordinate essential service delivery for families displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. She managed the data integrity for over $48 million in federally funded contracts, ensuring those funds reached the displaced families who needed financial assistance and case management the most.
Bringing her experience in data systems and program evaluation to state government, Tai joined as an analyst in 2008 and later became the designated State Census Data Center lead for Louisiana in 2011.
Where She Is Now
Tai is currently a director in OTS Administration Strategy & Planning and oversees a variety of special tasks and initiatives to address critical organizational priorities.
