Amanda Wodzenski | Principal and Co-Founder, HIKE2

Zenita Henderson, Treasurer | Chief Marketing Officer, Point Broadband

Tammy Teitscheid, Secretary | Chief People Officer, Elevations Credit Union

After 20 years as a tech veteran managing 7-figure projects for Fortune 500 companies, one thing troubled Mike: he was always the token blind guy. Knowing that the invaluable skills he developed because of his blindness were the keys to his success, he couldn’t understand why unemployment amongst the BVI community was so high. He embarked on a journey to change corporate America’s stigmas and misperceptions of BVI professionals, developing Blind Institute of Technology. Using the same skills that made him a success in IT, Mike has built partnerships and placed BVI professionals in Fortune 500 companies nationwide.

Mike has been featured in the Denver Post and the Denver Business Journal and has been honored with the 2017 Martin Luther King, Jr. Business Award and the 2019 GlobalMindED Inclusive Leader Award. BIT’s focus on accessible technology garnered invitations to present at Google Cloud Next 2019 and Salesforce’s Dreamforce 2019 conference. Mike is a co-host for Choose Inclusion, a podcast addressing the benefits of diversity and inclusion. In 2019, Mike’s vision of full access for BVI led him to develop EdgGuide, a navigation system that allows independent navigation in previously inaccessible public spaces.

Natalie has spent her life giving back. She went to school to become a Licensed Practical Nurse and moved into becoming the Chief Connections Officer for Blind Institute of Technology (BIT) which she says has been great. She has spent many years giving back to the elderly and volunteering outside the home, and at all three of her children’s schools. She does a little bit of everything at BIT; from back office tasks, payroll, and being the event planning. Support for BIT comes naturally to her, as she is passionate about helping people in general and those with disabilities. Natalie is the wife of the Executive Director, Mike Hess, and when he decided to start this venture, she was all in — she saw this as an amazing way to make a difference. She loves the people BIT assists as an organization, and she loves knowing that BIT has helped someone in some small or big way to have a more fulfilled life. She has met so many great people and she works with incredible people. Outside of work, Natalie is blessed to have two girls aged 30+, a great son-in-law, and one 14-year-old boy in addition to four incredible grandchildren that keep her busy. Natalie loves to ski, camp, hike, and have adventures in travel; she also likes to try new things. Most of all, Natalie loves spending time with her family and friends, creating great memories.

Kristy began working with BIT in 2019 in PR and Marketing and now runs the organization’s day-to-day business operations as the Director of Operations. She brings years of experience navigating the waters of the business world as a blind and visually impaired professional. After earning her bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of Wyoming, Kristy began a 15-year career as a paralegal, specializing in defense litigation. In 2007, she embarked on an adventure with her husband as a small-business owner of a local hardware store where she built the Human Resources department from the ground up. Deciding to pursue her passion for advocating for the blind and visually impaired, especially in the area of employment, Kristy was introduced to BIT and fell in love with its mission. She considers it a privilege to help talented BVI advance their professional careers and educate corporate America on the value BVI bring to the workplace. Outside the office, Kristy can usually be found watching her daughter play softball, camping with her family or generally enjoying the beautiful Colorado outdoors!

Ertay resides in North Macedonia and 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 certified Salesforce 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.

After growing up in Nebraska, 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 diverse 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 lives in St. Louis with her spouse and 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.

Mark grew up in Philly and New York and now lives in Miami Beach. He lost his hearing in 2015 following a career as a professional vocalist, guitarist, and cantor. He joined BIT’s Salesforce Administrator program in July of 2023 and became a certified Salesforce Administrator a month later. By November of 2023 he had earned seven more Salesforce certifications: Advanced Administrator, AI Associate, Associate, Business Analyst, Platform App Developer, Sales Cloud Consultant, and Service Cloud Consultant. He holds two Scrum certifications, Professional Scrum Master I and II. Mark is now one of the Salesforce consultancy team’s Project Leads, helping to develop and maintain clients’ Salesforce orgs, and working extensively with BIT’s Salesforce Apprenticeship program.

When he’s not plugging away at a computer, Mark likes to spend time at the beach, especially if the waves are up. He’s an avid coffee drinker and likes to spend his free time hanging out with friends and family. If there are dogs involved, he’s a happy camper.

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. A third generation Colorado native 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 residing in Chicagoland, where she shares her home with her beloved dogs, Arlo and Chi (pronounced Shy) and is the proud mom of one daughter.

With an impressive 24 years of experience in the field, Amy has honed her expertise through diverse 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.

With years of experience in talent acquisition, Taylor brings valuable insights to help shape our growing organization. He holds a Master of Science in Strategic Human Resources Management with a focus on Organizational Design from the University of Denver. Currently based in Chicago, Taylor enjoys exploring the city’s vibrant live music and comedy scenes, cooking, hiking, traveling, and supporting art house movie theaters. In his free time, he’s also an enthusiastic participant in fantasy football and a proud pet parent to his rescue cat, Theodore Roosecat, and Siberian Husky, Rocco.

Taylor has been a dedicated ally to the disability and accessibility community, being a long-time partner of a corporate leader in this space, who has retinitis pigmentosa. He is passionate about supporting the professional and personal growth of everyone at BIT, and we’re thrilled to have him on board as our new Recruiting Specialist!

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.

Dallas currently resides in Las Vegas, NV. Before working with BIT, she 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.

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.

Aaron was born in Louisville, Kentucky and has been legally blind his entire life due to Retinopathy of Prematurity. In 2018, Aaron noticed an increase in light sensitivity and had to run magnification software to the highest level. Aaron knew that he had to learn to become a jedi master using screen reading technology and not just another jedi knight. Aaron works as the Accessibility Project Lead at BIT and loves helping clients ensure their digital properties are inclusive to everyone regardless of disability status.

When Aaron isn’t plugged in at his computer, you can find him learning how to code, reading sci-fi or fantasy novels. He loves exploring the outdoors, whether hiking or wandering downtown, rarely relying on GPS to find his way home. Aaron is also an avid Braille user and all-around technology nerd.

James was born and raised in Northeast Ohio and has been legally blind since he was 9. 

James started his career in the world of marketing and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Marketing from Walsh University. He spent several years building websites, working in search engine optimization, Google Ads, and social media before making the move into the digital accessibility space. After spending more than two years learning and networking, James decided it was time to share what he learned about digital accessibility with the world. 

Today, James oversees the accessibility audit team here at BIT, leads the Train the Trainer programs, and even instructs the Digital Accessibility Analyst course.