Dr. Leilani Johnson is the architect of, and currently administers, the Distance Opportunities for Interpreter Training (DO IT) Center at the University of Northern Colorado.  The Center’s goal is to provide opportunities for distance learners to acquire interpreting skills and the knowledge sets necessary to effectively and appropriately apply those skills as an American Sign Language-English interpreter.  Additionally as part of her work, Leilani has solicited and managed more than $12.25 million of federal grants and State Education Agency partnership contracts since establishing the Center’s work in 1993.  The UNC-DO IT Center offers a baccalaureate degree and four undergraduate and graduate, professional development certificates to students throughout the United States.

In addition Leilani serves on the Interpreting via Video and the AA-BA work teams affiliated with the National Consortium of Interpreter Education Centers of which the UNC-DO IT Center is a member of through its partnership with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (2005-2010).  This grant-funded work includes national activities that are investigating various aspects of interpreting and interpreter education work.
Leilani also oversees an outreach site for the Postsecondary Education Program Network (PEPNet)-West.  Through this partnership with the University of California Northridge, services are provided throughout a four-state region to support individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing as they transition into postsecondary and work environments.

Leilani began her own academic journey in an Interpreter Training Program in the late-70s.  The Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf awarded her certification in 1983 and 1993.  A NAD certificate was achieved in 1989.  She was an interpreter practitioner from 1981-19093.  To enhance her abilities as an interpreter educator, she attended the Western Maryland College, Teaching Interpreting program, and built on that work to earn a Master’s of Education in Adult Education from Antioch University.  She completed her doctorate in 2001 from Nova southeastern University.  The Instructional Technology and Distance Education program equipped her for the challenges of distance education.

Anna is the Assistant Director for the DO IT Center. She has thirty-five years of experience in the field of interpreting as both a practitioner and educator. In her current capacity, she is responsible for the instructional programs of the Center. As well, her work involves contributing through the Mid-America Regional Interpreter Education Center (MARIE) to the National Consortium of Interpreter Education Centers (NCIEC)—a federally funded collaborative.  As part of her work with NCIEC, Anna serves as a member of the Effective Practices Team and is the Team Leader for the Legal Interpreting Workgroup. Anna earned her Masters degree in Education from Athabasca University in the area of instructional design and technology. She also holds the CSC, SC:Legal, OIC:C, SC:Performing Arts and the CI and CT certificates awarded by the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf.

Before joining the Center, Anna taught full-time in the Interpreter Training Program at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, North Carolina where she currently resides with her husband Michael. Formerly, Anna was the Chairperson for the Department of Interpreter Education at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID). She is also a co-founder of the Conference of Interpreter Trainers (CIT), a professional association of interpreter educators, and she has served two terms as the association's Vice-President during 1996-2000. Between 1983 and 1989, Anna had the privilege of serving as the Vice-President (2 terms) and President (1 term) of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf.

Two current publications of Anna include co-authorship of Toward Competent Practice: Conversations with Stakeholders with Leilani Johnson, Center Director, published by the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc., and The Dimensions of Ethical Decision-Making with colleague Kellie Stewart published by Sign Media, Inc. Currently, Anna serves on the Board of Editors for the CIT International Journal of Interpreter Education.

Susan Brown is the Administrative Coordinator for the DO IT Center. Susan comes to the Center from the state of Maine where she worked as an Educational Interpreter for fourteen years. She is a graduate of the University of Arizona and completed the Educational Interpreting Certificate Program in the summer of 2005. Susan served on the RID-EIPA Task Force and is currently the chair of the RID Educational Interpreter Task Force. Susan is also working on her Masters in Adult Learning and Education at Regis University.

Sherry Schriver is the Resource and Logistics Assistant for the DO IT Center. Her responsibilities are split between the Lowry and Greeley Campuses of UNC. She started with the Center January 2001 and has worked in the accounting field for the past 20 years. Sherry provides support for all DO IT Center financial activities including managing the budgets for the Center's multiple grants, travel for Center activities, ordering of instructional and office supplies and materials, as well as handling the contracts for the DO IT Center's distance and adjunct staff members.

Gertrude has worked in distance learning for 20 years and strongly supports educational opportunities being made available to anyone, anywhere, and at any time. Technology has broadened this opportunity immensely. Gertrude is currently working about 20 hours per week at the DO IT Center, providing general program assistance.

Timothy serves Colorado, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming as the PEPNet-West Outreach Specialist, with an office at the UNC-DO IT Center. The Outreach Specialist advances postsecondary educational opportunities for people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, by working collaboratively with other PEPNet centers to provide a broad variety of best practices and resources for enhancing educational opportunities. He offers consultation, training, professional development, cutting edge technical assistance and other resources to professionals who work with deaf or hard of hearning students, including -- but not limited to:

• Two- and Four-year Colleges & Universities
• Secondary Education Programs
• Community Rehabilitation Programs
• Continuing Education Programs
• Adult Basic Education Programs

Timothy is currently enrolled in a Doctor of Education Program for Adult and Higher Education. Most recently he completed training on American Sign Language/English Bilingual Research as the bilingual manager of the South Dakota School for the Deaf, where he was employed as a secondary teacher for three (3) years. He received his Masters of Science from William McDaniel College in Teaching Interpretation. He has his C.S.C., C.I., and C.T. certification from the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, and has worked as an interpreter practitioner and educator since 1975. This background coupled with his experience as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor for the Deaf and as a Director of Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell, Hearing Impaired Program makes him especially qualified to work with professionals who help Deaf and hard of hearing students with transition into higher education and vocational training opportunities.