Aaryn has been an interpreter for 20 years, earning her first certification in 2010. Aaryn values collaboration and strives to establish best practices within interpreting communities for managing vicarious trauma, navigating ethical decisions and building our businesses. The majority of her career, Aaryn has served on designated interpreter teams for medical professionals, PhD candidates and government employees. Aaryn has extensive experience working with CDIs. Her practice currently specializes in conference and business travel interpreting. Aaryn is a practitioner first, which is reflected in her interpreting practice, presentation topics and business relationship style. Each of her workshops include intrapersonal awareness and interpersonal navigation components for consideration. Aaryn fosters spaces in which participants co-create knowledge and understanding.

Since 2009, Alana has been empowering and guiding people in reaching their true designations using powerful, transformative coaching techniques gained from Certified Coaches Federation from which she received her certifications in executive, professional and life coaching. Her area of expertise is guiding individuals who are searching for their purpose and meaning in life to a place of actualization and contentment. In her coaching work, she draws from personal and professional experiences in working in corporations such as Purple Communications, NexTalk, Inc.,MCI/Verzion, and currently, with T-Mobile. As the founder and principal of Creative Consultations, Inc., she has been privileged to work with individuals and teams across the country to help them move past obstacles, uncover their potential, to gain clarity and moving forward with their goals. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree from Gallaudet University and her Master’s Degree in Organizational Development from University of Phoenix.

Corey Axelrod, MBA, is the founder and CEO of 2axend, a Deaf-owned strategic consulting and training firm working with organizations to provide user-centric experiences to Deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Prior to founding 2axend, Axelrod served in several business development roles for Communication Service for the Deaf, as well as principal and digital marketing consultant for Synergetic Business Solutions, digital marketing coordinator for Purple Communications and director of marketing and business development for Hager Productions. Axelrod earned his master of business administration (MBA) with a concentration in marketing and sales management and his bachelor of science in business administration from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Debra Patkin is Associate General Counsel at Gallaudet University, where she provides legal advice and support on a wide range of university matters, including labor and employment, contracts, student matters (K-12 and post-secondary), risk mitigation, litigation, compliance and institutional policy. Prior to joining Gallaudet, she served as an Attorney Advisor with the Federal Communications Commission, where she worked on policy and regulatory issues to ensure accessible communications for individuals with disabilities. Before that, as a staff attorney with the National Association of the Deaf (NAD). At NAD, she litigated civil-rights cases, advocated on behalf of the deaf and hard of hearing community, addressed consumer legal inquiries, and conducted outreach and education. Earlier in her career, Debra was a litigation attorney at the Disability Rights Legal Center in Los Angeles, California. She received her J.D. from University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, an M.A. in Linguistics from Gallaudet University, and a B.S. in Psychology from Rochester Institute of Technology. Debra now balances her legal career with her unofficial side gig as a full-time taxi driver for her children. In her spare time, she enjoys outdoor recreation and cheering on Boston sports teams.

David “DT” Bruno is a Deaf, ASL-using licensed master social worker specializing in integrated behavioral health, with a focus on Deaf communities and mental health care. His work centers on interprofessional collaboration with Deaf, DeafBlind, and hard of hearing (DDBHH) populations, with particular attention to healthcare navigation and implications for interpreting practice. He is a presenter at the 2026 Summit for Mental Health Interpreting. Bruno currently serves as a project manager at Gallaudet University’s Center for Deaf Health Excellence and provides psychotherapy in private practice. He earned a B.A. in Social Work from Gallaudet University and an M.S. in Social Work from Columbia University, and is a doctoral student at Simmons University School of Social Work. His research interests include the epistemology of Deaf mental health practice and the co-creation of symptom-based therapy (co-design) with Deaf clients, with implications for ASL interpreting practice.