Project Coordinator

Phone: 415-405-7558
E-mail: mbelote@sfsu.edu

Maurice Belote has served as the CDBS Project Coordinator since 1997 and began his work with the project in 1992 as an Educational Specialist. Maurice has taught at public and private schools throughout the state and has developed innovative models at local school sites related to integration into general education programs, augmentative and alternative communication systems, community-based instruction, job development and training, and transition from school to adult life. Maurice has conducted lectures and seminars at universities throughout the state and is frequently invited to present training workshops and institutes throughout the U.S. He is an active member of the National Deaf-Blind Network and represents CDBS in National Consortium on Deaf-Blindness initiatives specific to intervener training and early identification and referral. Maurice loves his work with children, families, and school teams, and is inspired every day by the courage and determination of the students he serves. He is a graduate of the teacher training program in deaf-blindness at San Francisco State University.

Educational Specialist

Phone: 415-405-7559
E-mail: davidb@sfsu.edu

David Brown has served as an Educational Specialist for CDBS since August 2000 providing technical assistance to students with deaf-blindness, families, and schools. Since entering the specialist field of deaf-blindness in 1982, he has become one of its most influential and published practitioners, and is in constant demand as a conference speaker around the world.  Prior to moving to CDBS, David was employed in leadership positions in the UK and served for many years as head of the Family & Education Service of the National Deafblind Association.  He has written training manuals for universities and other organizations and has published articles on a variety of topics, including many on CHARGE Syndrome, in American and international journals and magazines, which have currently been translated into 14 languages.

Project Director

Phone: 415-338-7848
E-mail: hunt@sfsu.edu

Pam Hunt is a professor in the Department of Special Education at SFSU and coordinator of their Moderate/Severe Disabilities Program.  In her role as credential program coordinator, she has collaborated with staff at CDBS to ensure that content specific to students who are deaf-blind is included in the core methods classes.  Dr. Hunt has recently served as the principal investigator for an innovative personnel preparation project funded by OSEP that included coursework specific to the education of students who are deaf-blind and extensive, supervised practica focusing on the provision of services to students with deaf-blindness and other significant disabilities in inclusive educational practices.  The major focus of her research has been on interventions to increase the academic and social participation of students with significant disabilities, including deaf-blindness, in inclusive settings.  Finally, Dr. Hunt has provided extensive consultation to school districts, educational teams, and families in local school districts on strategies to develop effective educational programs for students with low-incidence disabilities, including students with deaf-blindness.

Educational Specialist

E-mail:  jmaier@sfsu.edu

Julie Maier has served as a part-time Educational Specialist for CDBS since 2012 providing technical assistance to students with deaf-blindness, families, and schools. Julie served as the Program Coordinator for the OSEP-funded personnel preparation project University-Community Partnership to Effectively Prepare Teachers to Serve Students with Deaf-Blindness.  In this role she developed and coordinated coursework, fieldwork experiences, and internship activities for teacher candidates completing the three-semester endorsement program in deaf-blindness. In addition to her work with CDBS, Julie is a faculty member in the SFSU Department of Special Education and has served as a research assistant, guest lecturer, course instructor and fieldwork supervisor in the moderate-severe teaching credential and Masters degree programs since 1999.

Family Specialist

Phone: 951-785-7898
E-mail: medinam66@sbcglobal.net

Myrna Medina has served as CDBS Family Specialist since 2000 supporting families who have a child with deaf-blindness.  She is the parent of two children, one of whom is deaf-blind as a result of an unknown etiology. Myrna is a native of Mexico and is fluent in English and Spanish. She has been instrumental in ensuring linguistic and cultural sensitivity of all CDBS Spanish language services and products.  Myrna serves as the coordinator as well as an active regional participant of the CDBS Network of Family Support Providers and is currently serving her second term as Secretary of the Coalition of Parents and Educators Deaf-Blind (COPE-DB), the statewide family organization on behalf of children who are deaf-blind.  Myrna also plays a leadership role in numerous organizations throughout the state, including Unidad y Fuerza (the FRC based at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach), Centro de Niños y Padres at California State University Los Angeles, Birth-to-Five Vision Network, Junior Blind of America, and Dicapta, an OSEP-funded accessible communication development project.

Educational Specialist

Phone: 310-823-5824
E-mail: gloriagil@roadrunner.com

Gloria Rodriquez-Gil has served as an Educational Specialist for CDBS since 1999, providing technical assistance to students with deaf-blindness, families, and schools.  She was educated in Costa Rica, Spain and the U.S. and is English-Spanish bilingual.  Gloria was the founder and developer of the first educational program in Central America for children who are deaf-blind and co-creator of the first Master's degree program in multiple disabilities and deaf-blindness at the prestigious Universidad de Costa Rica.  Prior to her arrival at CDBS, Gloria served as the Bilingual Coordinator for the federally funded Project SALUTE and was (and continues to be) an international consultant for Perkins International in Latin America.  At CDBS, Gloria works with both English-speaking and Spanish-speaking families and has conducted numerous training activities in Spanish and English throughout California for families and educators.  Gloria has lectured at universities, collected research data for projects specific to deaf-blindness, and writes many specialized articles and blogs on deaf-blindness for CDBS.

Currently vacant