Meet the Team

Kristine started working with BIT in 2018. She has been in fundraising for more than 20 years and before joining BIT she was the Development Director at Anchor Center for Blind Children. Working for BIT blends two of her passions – fundraising for a great cause and technology. She received her degree from Metro State University in Denver in Computer and Management Science. She worked in the field for about 5 years training on medical billing systems before she transitioned to the nonprofit sector. She cheers on all of the state’s sports teams and loves to travel, spend time with her nieces and nephews and scrapbook her photographs. She loves to read and is in a book club and also loves to cook and bake – anything that is crafty fuels her artistic side. She loves meeting all the donors and supporters of BIT’s mission at events or during grant proposal meetings.

Amy McCaw is an esteemed marketing professional who lives with her beloved dogs and is the proud mom of one daughter.

With an impressive 28 years of experience in the field, Amy has honed her expertise through roles in various industries. Her career spans a decade in healthcare marketing, another decade in financial services marketing, and currently, she serves as a valuable asset at the Blind Institute of Technology (BIT).

With her extensive background and unwavering dedication, Amy excels in developing innovative strategies to elevate brands and drive business growth. Her passion for leveraging marketing tactics to make a positive impact is evident in her accomplishments throughout her career. Embodying a strong work ethic and a keen eye for detail, Amy is committed to delivering exceptional results that exceed expectations.

Amy’s dedication to excellence and track record of success, combined with her adaptability and strategic mindset, position her as a standout in the marketing field. Her collaborative approach and strong communication skills ensure comprehensive support in every project.

Taylor Sone is an I/O Psychology professional. Diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa at 15, she didn’t become truly involved in the blind and visually impaired (BVI) community until pursuing her Master’s in I/O Psychology. She joined the BIT team in August 2023 as an intern and quickly stepped into the role of Apprenticeship Program Manager in November 2024. In this role, she works closely with apprentices and project leads to foster the supportive, growth-centered environment where individuals develop their technical and professional skills. With a background in organizational development, Taylor leads thoughtful, data-informed approaches to support apprentices through individualized feedback, program refinement, and professional development strategies.

When she’s not collaborating with BIT teams, you’ll find her knitting cozy projects or hanging out with her two very mischievous cats. She also enjoys catching up on her favorite TV shows with quality audio description and tackling the New York Times games of the day.

Amy started in her position as BIT’s administrative assistant in December of 2022. She provides support to our Chief Connections Officer and Director of Operations. She got here by a very happy accident, which was signing up for one of BIT’s Salesforce classes. In her spare time, you can find Amy feeding people. Cooking and baking are some of her love languages. She also loves singing and making music. Amy runs a small business called SpeedDots, which produces tactile screen protectors for iOS devices, and she co-hosts a conversational and advocacy podcast with her fiancé, called The Brandon and Amy Show.

Ertay is the first international employee of BIT. He has a background in software engineering and received his degree from the University of Information Science and Technology “Saint Paul the Apostle” in Ohrid. Despite losing his sight in 2018, Ertay has successfully adjusted to using technology with a screen reader. He joined BIT’s Salesforce Admin course and became a Salesforce Certified Platform Administrator in May 2021, followed by acquiring the Salesforce Platform Developer I certification in December of 2021. Ertay now serves as a Project Lead on the Delivery Team, where he is responsible for building and maintaining our clients’ Salesforce Orgs.

In his free time, Ertay enjoys playing board games with his friends and listening to audio books while indoor rowing. He also likes to work on improving his home theater setup whenever he gets the chance.

Rebecca packed up her long white cane and moved halfway across the country to get a bachelor’s degree in Japanese from Georgetown University—and then halfway around the world to study abroad in Japan. After gaining some experience in the wholly unrelated fields of cane travel education and editing, she decided to apply the drive and creative problem-solving skills she developed from that varied background to attending BIT’s Salesforce Academy. She is now one of the Salesforce consulting team’s certified admins, working to improve the efficiency of BIT’s org and to help other nonprofits develop their own instances of Salesforce to meet their unique needs. Since joining the team, she has helped pioneer BIT’s in-house paid apprenticeship program, applying her passion for education to helping candidates gain Salesforce work experience.

Outside of work, Rebecca enjoys reading, linguistics, knitting, and various nerdy hobbies like tabletop board games. When the weather’s nice, she likes to canoe, hike, or go for tandem bike rides with her family. When it’s less nice, she can often be found curled up with a cozy blanket and a mug of her favorite tea or coffee.

Christy works as part of the delivery team, assisting with projects for clients and keeping the internal systems up to date and working smoothly. She has been blind since a very young age, and ever since graduating high school she wanted to work in IT, but struggled to break into the industry. Christy began with BIT as a student in a Salesforce Administration class. After completing the course and getting her certification, she worked as an apprentice and assisted the delivery team with a very large, complex project. In December of 2022, she accepted a full-time position with BIT. Christy enjoys playing with her two very friendly kitties. In her spare time, she enjoys music and singing, any friendly animals, children, swimming when possible, and of course technology.

Austin Marshall joined the BIT team with a background in broadcast engineering. After earning his Bachelor’s in Communication from Mississippi State University, he worked in remote sports television, contributing to some of the biggest live broadcasts on ESPN and CBS.

Austin transitioned into the Salesforce ecosystem—a natural shift thanks to his overlapping skill set. He is currently climbing the Salesforce Architect pyramid with the goal of earning his B2B Solution Architect Certification.

Outside of work, Austin is an avid triathlete who enjoys training, racing, hiking, and backpacking. He’s often accompanied by his two guide dogs, Bruxie and Bentley. Passionate about disability advocacy, Austin also volunteers with Dogs Inc., serving on their outreach team.

August earned his Salesforce Administrator certification through the BIT Academy in 2024, and was in the first group of apprentices to be hired under the DIF grant. Auggie completed the apprenticeship program in July 2026, and is now a Project Lead on the Salesforce Delivery Team.

Auggie has an eclectic background that includes a BA in television writing and production, an MFA in creative writing, and work experience in customer support, education, and frontend software engineering. He appreciates the balance of technical and creative skills required for Salesforce consulting, and has a particular passion for technical documentation.

Auggie lives in Boulder, Colorado with his husband, tiny dog, and huge cat. He enjoys podcasts, audiobooks, and hanging out with his barn community and his horse, Clark.

With a passion for making technology accessible and easy to use, Elliott has spent over 15 years in IT, education, and accessibility, helping people build confidence with technology in both their personal and professional lives. He firmly believes that technology is the great equalizer—when used effectively, it can break down barriers, create opportunities, and empower people to reach their full potential.

He has designed and led training programs focused on real-world skills, creating a supportive learning environment where everyone has the tools they need to succeed. As Academy Director, he is focused on expanding educational opportunities, driving innovation, and supporting students as they work toward their goals.

Outside of work, Elliott loves spending time with his family, especially swimming and going to the beach. A self-proclaimed nerd, he enjoys attending Comic-Con and geeking out over all things sci-fi and tech. He also shares his love of space exploration with his family, making trips to NASA launches whenever possible.

Before working with BIT, Dallas worked as a licensed vocational nurse in California for over four years. She completed BIT’s Salesforce Administrator certification prep course in April of 2022 and earned her admin certification in June of 2022; she then worked as a BIT apprentice on multiple projects until January of 2023, when she became an Academy Instructor. She is so happy that she can be a part of helping people with disabilities find gainful employment.

Outside of work, she loves spending time with her dog, Heidi, and two cats, Gracie and Millie. She likes to crochet, loom knit, and listen to true crime podcasts. She also enjoys hiking with her family whenever she can.

Instructor Ayush Mathur is a Certified Scrum Master, SAFe® Scrum Master, and SAFe® Product Owner/Product Manager with more than eight years of experience in Agile delivery, project management, and cloud migrations. Based in the Dallas area, Ayush is also a full-time NVDA and JAWS user, bringing an accessibility-first perspective to Agile leadership. As BIT’s Lead Scrum Course Instructor, he is passionate about helping disabled professionals develop the leadership, collaboration, and technical skills needed to thrive in today’s technology workforce.

Darrell Hilliker serves as BIT’s Accessibility Education Lead and is the Lead Instructor for the Digital Accessibility Analyst program. As a totally blind professional who relies on screen readers and Braille displays every day, he brings firsthand accessibility expertise to every aspect of the program, from designing curriculum and leading live instruction to mentoring apprentices.

Darrell holds the Certified Professional in Web Accessibility (CPWA) credential and is certified in both the JAWS and NVDA screen readers. He also brings extensive Salesforce expertise as a certified Salesforce Administrator, Advanced Administrator, AI Associate, Service Cloud Consultant, and User Experience Designer. Having relaunched his own career through BIT, Darrell is passionate about helping learners build the technical skills and confidence to launch successful careers in digital accessibility.

My name is Brando Collins. I’m an accessibility engineer with BIT and have been working in web development for about four years. One of my greatest passions is helping people, and making the world accessible to them is one express way to do so. I graduated from TrueCoders trade school in 2021, and continue to study cloud computing, full stack web development, and programming. I write, build, and manage accessible websites and applications for private clients and companies that want the impact of having accessibility in place from square one.

RJ is committed to creating truly usable digital experiences that reach everyone. A seasoned project manager and operations professional, RJ is a CPACC-certified digital accessibility expert who has led over 100 accessibility projects, including testing, remediation, formal training, ongoing consulting, and maturity model engagements.

As a color-blind professional, RJ leads IAAP-certified testers—nearly all of whom use assistive technology natively—in auditing and remediation efforts. Since really entering the world of accessibility in 2023, he has laser-focused on educating, upskilling, raising awareness, and fostering understanding. He continuously develops deep relationships with clients to make measurable improvements in digital accessibility and usability.