Welcome, Peter Arvanitakis and Donal Gordon! They both join KC Digital Drive as an American Connection Corps (ACC) AmeriCorps member, serving in the 2026-27 service year, thanks, in part, to the generous support from Comcast.
Peter, returning for his second year as an ACC member, will continue to focus on efforts to improve the Digital Life Exchange programming, through building trusted partnerships, facilitating capacity-building opportunities, such as the Digital Ambassadors program, and amplifying the digital inclusion and tech innovation ecosystems in Kansas City through his strength in storytelling. With his first year behind him, we are excited to welcome him back and congratulate him on being an ACC Team Lead for this year’s cohort, offering expertise and mentorship to his fellow members.
Donal will be serving as a liaison between Tech Central and the Digital Services and Support Center, offering his expertise in community engagement and project management to help inform the tech ecosystem efforts related to digital infrastructure, transformation, and impact. He will be adding capacity to many of our ongoing projects, offering his perspective on strategy in civic innovation and how we engage with the coding and university community, and economic development strategies for the region. Donal (pronounced like “tonal”) brings his previous experience as an AmeriCorps member at the Kansas City Public Library, years as a partnership manager for Meta, and a mind for civic engagement to the role.
Q: What are some of your values and how do you plan on using them in the next year?
Peter: Trust and storytelling are the two values I keep coming back to. Trust, because most of what I did in year one was about earning it: building relationships before proposing anything. That’s paid off. Year two, I have the credibility to act on ideas I couldn’t have pushed a year ago, and I want to use that same trust as a Team Lead, creating space for first-year members to be heard and modeling what it looks like to advocate once you’ve earned the standing to do it.
Storytelling is the other one. Digital inclusion work often goes unseen. I want to use that strength to make the Digital Life Exchange (DLX) work (Digital Ambassador Program and the broader KC tech and digital equity ecosystems) more visible, not just to funders, but to the people doing the work who rarely see it reflected back.
Donal: Two principles guide my work: being empathy driven and solutions oriented. Listening to and understanding the people you’re trying to help is essential to building programs and services that allow them to thrive and move forward in their lives. That’s exactly what I look forward to doing in this role.
Q: Why is now the time for you to go into public service?
Donal: I’ve always been drawn to public service because it offers a rare chance to make a lasting difference in your own community. In a political climate that can feel hopeless and divisive, public service pushes back on that cynicism and focuses on finding real solutions in a world that is constantly changing. I want to be part of the work that improves people’s lives and helps them succeed.
Q: What are your biggest goals and aspirations for returning for another year?
Peter: My biggest goal is scope. Last year I identified problems I could see clearly but couldn’t yet act on. This year I want to actually move on them–growing what Digital Ambassadors can offer, including additional training so they can succeed in their time as a digital ambassador and know how to highlight the skills they’ve gained, and pushing DLX programming further than it’s gone before.
The other piece is the national cohort of ACC members. As 1 of 4 acting Team Leads of this cohort, I want to pass on what I learned my first year, getting to know the landscape of my host site, going to networking events, learning how to talk with people (that was one of my strengths) so this year’s first year and returning members can get there faster than I did. If I do that well, the impact isn’t just what I get done this year, it’s what the next group of members is equipped to do.
Q: What are some of your personal goals in the next year and what drives you to accomplish them?
Peter: I want to be specific about where this is heading instead of hedging on it. I’m building toward a career in project management, ideally the kind that involves growing programs into something sustainable rather than just running them for a term. The DLX-led initiative Digital Ambassador Program has already given me that practice, scoping work, managing timelines and thinking about what outlasts my involvement, and I want this year to sharpen that on purpose instead of picking it up by accident. What drives me is wanting proof that I can actually do this, not just learn it. This is the year I stop treating that career as a future plan and start treating it as something I’m already building toward.
Donal: I’m entering this year with a few goals, and I expect to refine them as I talk with our local partners and community. The areas I’m most eager to learn about are how to work effectively with government and nonprofit organizations and how to connect digital inclusion efforts to workforce pathways. What drives me is simple: when I succeed, someone’s life gets better because of it.
Q: What is most important for our stakeholders to know about you?
Peter: What I’d want stakeholders to know is that I lead with curiosity. I’d rather ask a question and actually learn something about an organization or a person’s work than assume I already understand it. That’s what makes the connection possible. I can only bridge people, ideas, and organizations across this ecosystem if I’ve actually taken the time to understand what each of them needs and what they’re building. That’s the value I bring beyond any single project. I’m not running a single DLX project or the Digital Ambassadors Program in isolation. I’m someone who’s paying attention across the whole landscape and looking where a connection would actually help.
Donal: I may be biased, but I believe Kansas City is a vibrant region full of potential and remarkable civic engagement. Over the next year, I’m eager to support the people of this region through the many projects I’ll be involved in, and I hope to plant seeds that future generations will harvest. Let’s get to work.