Who We Are
The MCDHH Board is comprised of Advisory Council Representatives and At-Large Members. Advisory Council Representatives are selected from the 8 statewide Advisory Councils that advise the Department of Human Services Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services Division. At-large Members can be selected from any area of Minnesota. All MCDHH Board Members bring the concerns of their communities to MCDHH and help to communicate the work that MCDHH is doing back home.
Advisory Council Members
Advisory Council Representatives are selected from the 8 statewide Advisory Councils that advise the Department of Human Services Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services Division.
Adrienne Haugen
Region: West Central
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Ade Haugen is a severely hard of hearing and blind person, who has a guide dog named Abbey. Together Ade and Abbey visit different schools, nursing homes, and state organizations to talk about deafness, blindness, and deafblindness. Ade is also a member and past trustee of the Minnesota Deafblind Association (MDBA). Ade is a dedicated volunteer and leader for the rights and needs of deafblind people in Minnesota.
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Jeri Werner
Region: Northeast
Werner, of Duluth, is a vocational rehabilitation counselor for Rehabilitation Services with the Department of Employment and Economic Development in Duluth. She is also a member of the Northeast Regional Advisory Committee with Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services where she serves as a deaf-hard of hearing specialist. Werner earned her Bachelor of Science degree in deafness rehabilitation services from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois, and a Master of Arts degree in rehabilitation counseling from the University of Arizona in Tucson.
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Dave Kyler
Region: Upper North West
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Liz McDevitt
Region: Metro
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Toni Fairbanks, Executive Committee
Region: North West
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Toni was born deaf, grew up in Texas, graduated from college in New York, was both a bank and a law firm worker, and then she decided to became a Minnesotan. Now she is busy being an SSP for deafblind people, a mentor for deaf kids, a college level ASL teacher, and being a sign language mentor for both teachers of the deaf/hard of hearing and interpreters. She lives in northwestern Minnesota with her deaf husband, Clay, her three children (one set of twins), and five horses. Toni joined MCDHH to have a better experience with the government.
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Amy Deneen
Region: South East
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I have an Associates degree from Inver Hills Community College with an emphasis in Human Services, and a BA from the College of St. Catherine in Occupational Therapy. I am the parent of a son with a hearing loss. I work part time for Fairview Red Wing Health Services as an OT and am the former South East Parent Guide for MInnesota Hands & Voices.
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Jill Rohman
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Jill Rohman, South West Advisory Council Representitive
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Region: South West
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Jill has been working in the deaf/hard of hearing field for 16 years. She graduated from Augustana College with a degree in Deaf Education and Elementary Education. She is currently a regional consultant for SW/WC Service Cooperative, serving deaf/hard of hearing students in Southwest Minnesota. She also serves on the MN DeafBlind Network, MN DHH Network, and her regional Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Team. In the past, she worked for the New London-Spicer School District as a Teacher of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing. Jill lives in Spicer with her husband Alan, and three children, Mya, Emma, and Gabe.
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Michele Isham
Region: East Central
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Michele Isham, of St. Cloud, has 16 years of experience with the Benton Stearns Education District where she is a teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing.
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At-Large Members
At-large Members can be selected from any area of Minnesota.
Monique Hammond, Executive Committee
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Monique Hammond
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Monique Hammond was born and raised in Luxembourg, Europe. She studied Pharmacy at the University of Minnesota and graduated with High Distinction. She is married and has one daughter.
Monique has worked in health care for over thirty years. As a hospital pharmacist her major priorities have always been patient safety, health education and disease prevention.
Monique entered the world of the hearing challenged in the Fall of 2005 when – in a matter of four hours – she went totally deaf in her left ear. In no time at all, life had changed forever! Yet, it was also the start of a new calling.
Monique joined the Twin Cities’ Chapter of the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA TC) a local support group for people with hearing loss. She maintains her devotion to HLAA TC. She is Past President.
Her quest and dream are to move the issues of deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing people to the forefront and to raise public awareness through educational efforts. Her major focus as a MCDHH board member is to represent the issues and the interests of the Hard of Hearing community. There is so much to do and so little time!
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Elise Knopf, Chair
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Elise Knopf is the Director of PEPNet-Midwest. In the past Elise worked as the Program Coordinator for the Minnesota Employment Center for People who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (MEC), with Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, CSD of Minnesota, and for the Massachusetts Commission of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. Elise has a Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from Gallaudet University and a Bachelor’s degree in History from Cornell College in Iowa.
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Kim Wassenaar
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Patti Morelli Teachout, Vice Chair
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Patti Morelli Teachout is married, has two sons, and is an occupational therapist. Patti’s youngest son is hard of hearing and uses hearing aids. When Patti’s insurance company would not pay for her son’s hearing aids, Patti became involved in the deaf and hard of hearing community. Patti and other parents fought to make insurance companies in Minnesota pay for hearing aids for children who are born deaf, hard of hearing, or deafblind; the parents won.
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Dr. Susan Rose
Susan Rose, Ph.D., is an associate professor at the University of Minnesota. She coordinates the professional development program in special education and is the faculty liaison for the undergraduate ASL world languages program. She served as a D/HH teacher in residential and itinerant programs, and as a speech pathologist and interpreter at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf.
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Tom Anderson
Tom Anderson, of Roseville, is an experienced real estate broker with RE/Max Opportunities. He also works at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. He is extensively involved in the deaf community through education, business and non-profit organizations. He routinely conducts home selling seminars in American Sign Language.
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Tom Lehman
Lehman, of St. Paul, is the owner of Lehman Associates, a management consulting firm that specializes in business planning, marketing, and product strategies for interactive technology services. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree and Masters of Arts degree in urban geography and demography from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
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Vacancies
There are no vacancies on the board.
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Ex Officio
Bruce Hodek
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Bruce Hodek
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For 25 years Bruce Hodek has worked for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services (DHHS) with a master’s degree in Deafness Rehabilitation from New York University, a bachelor degree in Vocational Rehabilitation from the University of Wisconsin-Stout, and a certificate in the administration of Deafness Rehabilitation from San Diego State University. Bruce is now division director of DHHS and is married to Jan Radatz. On nights and weekends Bruce and Jan are either busy with maintaining their yard, keeping up with their 3 children, or chasing after their one year old yellow lab.
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Staff
Mary Hartnett, Executive Director
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Mary Hartnett, Executive Director
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For over 30 years Mary Hartnett has worked with the deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind communities in many different roles. Mary has been an educational sign language interpreter, a freelance sign language interpreter, a lobbyist, a community organizer and an executive director of three different nonprofit agencies. Mary has received awards from the Minnesota Association of Deaf Citizens, The Minnesota DeafBlind Association, the Ramsey County Bar Association, The Dispute Resolution Center, Lifetrack Resources, the Public Policy Award for Age and Disability from the Minnesota Department of Human Services and the Antonia Branca Award for Excellence in Early Hearing Detection and Intervention from the National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management and the Center for Disease Control.
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Cynthia Weitzel, Public Policy Coordinator
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Cynthia Weitzel Public Policy Coordinator
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Cynthia Weitzel is Public Policy Coordinator for the Commission. She was born hard of hearing to Deaf parents. With progressive hearing loss, she later became Deaf herself during her high school years. Cynthia attended Gallaudet University and traveled the country extensively before embarking on a 15-year career as counselor, advocate, consultant, trainer and program manager in the non-profit sector serving the deaf and hard of hearing community – both in Minnesota and Tennessee. She also attended the University of Minnesota and Austin Peay State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in business management and fine art. Cynthia believes the best solution towards influencing change is team work – relationship building is key. While one person can make a difference; an entire community can make history.
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Jamie Taylor, Civic Engagement & Access Specialist
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Jamie Taylor, Technology & Access Specialist
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A Minnesota native by heart, Jamie was born deafblind to hearing parents.
Later she would attend the University of Minnesota, earning a bachelor’s degree in Deaf Studies and master’s degree in Deaf Education with emphasis on technology access. She has traveled extensively in the US and abroad as an ambassador, access specialist, mentor, and lecturer at several professional conferences and workshops on a variety of subjects ranging from communication methodology to the psychological importance of support groups in the lives of young adults with deafblindness.
Currently, in addition to her continued involvement on behalf of the deafblind community, she is working as Technology and Access Specialist for MCDHH. Jamie hopes to strengthen Minnesota’s deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing community and increase their civic participation.
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Mary ‘Kay’ Chiara, Office Manager
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Mary "Kay" Chaira, Office Manager
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As a recent transplant to St. Paul, Kay is enjoying her transition into her Office Manager position at MCDHH. For the past five years she has worked with students with disabilities (ex: blindness, deafness, and ADD) at Disability Resources at the University of Minnesota-Duluth; where she learned a lot from her close associations with students from many backgrounds. Prior to Disability Resources, Kay worked in a research lab devoted to studying the ability of the brain to recognize sound. She has a Bachelor’s degree in science. Kay is looking forward to digging in the garden, and finding local yarn shops.
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