With no contested positions, these individuals will be sworn in at the Fall 2024 board meeting.
RID Vice President-Elect
Shonna Magee, MRC, CI and CT, NIC Master, OTC
RID’s purpose is to serve equally our members, profession, and the public by promoting and advocating for qualified and effective interpreters in all spaces where intersectional diverse Deaf lives are impacted.
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc.
PO Box 17581
Arlington, VA 22216-7581
Hello Everyone! I, Dr. Jesús Remigio, am so thrilled to learn that I am the elected president of RID. It is an honor for me that I’m going to be the president. I know we have a lot of things to do. I admit I’m nervous a bit but I’m excited! I’m a human being. I am committed to supporting and collaborating with each of you. WE are the key to this success. My background: Also, I am currently Vice President of RID until the next term. Some of you know that I am working at Gallaudet University as the Director of Equal Opportunity Programs/ Title IX Coordinator. I am looking forward to working with you! See you soon! Thank you!
Dr. Rēmigiō is hispanic and the first generation in his family to have graduated from college. He received his Psy. D from William James College, and his MBA from Salem University. He is currently the Associate Director of Student Accessibility Services at Brown University where He can often be seen sporting a bright bow tie and zooming around campus on his segway in his Five Finger shoes. Jesús’ experience and intersectional identities enable him to offer a unique set of perspectives that will benefit the membership of RID and the Deaf, & Deaf blind community, and hearing community that it serves. He is a past President of the Rhode Island Association for the Deaf and continues his service as a board member for The Rhode Island School for Deaf. Jesús has been a Certified Deaf Interpreter for almost 7 years, interpreting primarily in the medical, and mental health settings. He is also a very proud father of two amazing boys. He lives with his children and husband in his hometown, Providence, RI.
Shonna Magee (MRC, CI and CT, NIC Master, OTC) has over 26 years of experience interpreting, presenting, providing interpreter diagnostics, and mentoring. She specializes in emergency management, vocational rehabilitation, VRI, and medical interpreting. She has served as a professor of interpreting and ASL at Daytona State College and a professor of ASL at Pensacola State College. She received her Bachelor’s in interpreting from the University of Cincinnati and her Master’s in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of South Carolina where she was the Statewide Coordinator of Deaf Services for the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department. She is currently the Director of Operations at SIGNature Access Solutions LLC and SIGNature CEUs LLC.
Ladies and gentlemen, esteemed members of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc. (RID), and fellow allies for our vibrant community.
I am Jason Hurdich, JH; I am Deaf, caucasian, and have bald hair. I am wearing a black long-sleeved buttoned shirt with a red tie and dark blue glasses, and I have a dark blue background; I am honored to seek re-election as Secretary of RID. In my time serving on the Board for the past three years, I’ve witnessed the value of our organization and its potential to shape a brighter future. I’ve worked on critical reforms along with other Board members, such as modernizing our ethical practices system (EPS) and fortifying the integrity of national certification.
As interpreters and stakeholders, we are responsible for bridging communication gaps, fostering understanding, and empowering the intersectionality of the Deaf community. Our collective efforts can lead to positive change and a more inclusive society.
I am deeply committed to honoring the intersectionality of the Deaf community and ensuring that our decisions as a Board reflect empathy and respect. One of my key initiatives is to modernize our historical database, allowing us to trace our path, learn from our past, and celebrate our progress.
I humbly request your support in elevating RID, honoring our values, and championing the Deaf community. Together, let us steward transparency, innovation, and inclusivity.
Thank you for your continued support for my re-election campaign.
Jason Hurdich (Name Sign: J.H.) is a Deaf native ASL signer from New York City with a B.A. in Political Science from Boston University and a Master of Education degree in Signed Language Interpretation from the University of North Florida. With 30 years of experience in American Sign Language (ASL) and Signed Language Interpreting instruction at several colleges and universities, Mr. Hurdich is currently a Senior Lecturer of ASL at Clemson University in South Carolina. He is also a Registry of Interpreters of the Deaf (RID) Certified Deaf Interpreter since 2013, with two decades of professional interpreting experience as a Deaf Interpreter (DI).
In addition to his teaching and interpreting work, Mr. Hurdich has been actively involved in research as a Team Leader of Sign Language Projects for Vcom3D, Inc. for nearly ten years, focusing on creating sign language avatars. He has been recognized for his contributions to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community, including receiving the Marie Griffin Interpreter of the Year Award in 2017 and being named the 2021 Palmetto Goodwill (South Carolina) State Champion for his work on behalf of individuals with disabilities, including the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community, by empowering them to overcome employment barriers.
Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would be running for a Board position for RID again… and here I am! Since assuming the role of Treasurer officially in January 2022, it has been an immense honor to serve in this capacity. It’s been a great opportunity to dive in and learn about the system that is RID and identifies areas of opportunity to improve efficiencies, maximize successes and create positive impact for our membership and communities at large. I’ve learned a great deal about Headquarters, the team’s roles and responsibilities as well as areas of focus, current priorities. I have enjoyed the process of not only contributing to our current mission and vision, but also our current strategic plan and action plan that drives the work of our long term strategy. I love to share resources and information with our colleagues so that we as members can fully leverage RID as an organization of resources, scholarships and awards. I look forward to another term of service to continue the momentum of energy that we have invested last term. I feel like last term, we focused a great deal on establishing a strong infrastructure. This is not very visible to members though. It reminds me of real estate investments. When you buy a house that needs a lot of infrastructure work like updating the plumbing system or electrical system, that work is not visible to the passersby, the people outside of the house, however it’s critical for the long term strength of that home. That metaphor feels relevant to the work this Board has been focused on last term. Now with a stronger foundation in place, deeper understanding of the system, clear commitment to the strategic plan, and returning board members, we are well positioned to keep the momentum going strong for you. Thank you for your confidence, thank you for your communication, and thank you to all of you who volunteer your time, most of all, thank you for your commitment to a future that is open and inclusive to all of our colleagues.
Kate has over fifteen years of experience as a thought leader and agent of change and enjoys the challenges and successes of working with teams and creating systemic access. Kate is a former founder of a social impact organization that was a vehicle for change by investing revenue into the local Deaf Community efforts, access and programming. Kate’s experience building a company that had real impact for the local community also afforded her the opportunity to partner with organizations and institutions in creating access within their systems. She has led hospital leadership, private corporation personnel, universities, and non-profit organization leaders through the process of maximizing their resources while creating a system of service provision that allows their constituents peace of mind. With her professional expertise, she brings a level of innovation and sustainability, while maintaining a culture of respect and principles that honor each entity’s unique structure, culture and operations.
Academically, Kate is a graduate of Northeastern University’s Interpreter Education Program and holds a Master’s degree in Social Impact from Claremont Lincoln University. After a decade of coordinating interpreting services at the post-secondary level, Kate dedicated herself to providing reputable, accessible Deaf-centric services by listening to and working directly with Deaf consumers.
Kate and her husband live in rural Maryland with their energetic children and enjoys taking advantage of all the countryside has to offer, while continuing her love of learning and positively contributing to our communities.
Greetings! My name is Mona Mehrpour and this is my sign name. I identify as a Middle Eastern woman with short, dark brown, curly hair, light tan skin, dark, brown eyebrows, and dark brown eyes. I have light brown lipstick on and my nose is pierced. I’m wearing small gold hoop earrings with a bracelet and a ring. The shirt under my cream cardigan is a dark blue, sort of navy. Behind me is a dark purple wall. I am an Iranian American who grew up in California but now reside in Virginia. Both of my parents are deaf and have been interpreting professionally for 15 years. It is unbelievable how fast time has flown by. I learned about RID sometime back but have been involved since 2019. I joined the Deaf-Parented Interpreters Member Section, DPI, starting off as a Region Representative, then became the Vice Chair, and now serving as Chair. I have learned so much since then and still learning my role. However, I am looking forward to how we can transform what will happen in our field and the organization. My goal as Member at Large, MAL, is to collaborate and engage with the member sections to provide the necessary support and resources to ensure they have everything to thrive and grow. This also includes delivering commitments for members. I truly enjoyed connecting and learning about different perspectives. Without those perspectives and engagements, we would still remain in the same position. I’m participating in making that change and I hope that you will too. Looking forward to this and I appreciate the opportunity. Thank you so much for watching.
Mona Mehrpour is a heritage signer of ASL and the daughter of two deaf parents. Over the past 15 years, she has interpreted in a variety of settings, including educational interpreting in K-12 and post-secondary settings, video relay, medical, community, theater and public services throughout Northern California. Throughout her interpreting journey, she has completed an interpreting training program, received a 4.0 on the EIPA, and became a nationally certified interpreter (NIC). Mona currently resides in Virginia, continuing her interpreting journey by engaging in both community and virtual work. She also volunteers and serves Deaf-Parented Interpreters Member Section as Chair under the Registry Interpreters for the Deaf. As an immigrant and a child of immigrants from Iran, Mona grew up in multiple deaf communities which is her source of inspiration for continual growth. She thrives on the connections she makes with her peers in dialogues about personal development and dissecting interpreting work in order to understand the decision-making processes to provide the best possible access for our diverse deaf communities.
Hi, I’m Glenna Cooper. Approximately, two years ago, the RID Board had appointed me to serve the board as Deaf MAL. Subsequently, it had been a great honor to work with the board, headquarters team, and members section leaders. Also, it has been an honor working with members, the Deaf community, and Deaf/hearing interpreters.
We do still have a lot of work to do. All this time, I feel my work is not complete. I am willing to continue to work into the next term with my strong commitment to making changes.
We all have the same goals for the RID Transformation and are eager to see it through to meet everyone’s needs. We are aware of these important issues such as diversity and the national shortage of deaf and hearing interpreters, especially in rural areas.
We are aware to address these challenges that we want to continue to make progress ahead.
Again, yes, we do have work to do. Yes, I’m very committed and dedicated to continuing these endeavors. I want to thank you for your encouragement for me to continue my role as the next DMAL. I do look forward to working with you into the next term. Thank you.
Glenna has over 25 years of experience in program management, supervision, training, grant writing and marketing on local, state, and federal levels. She is currently an Associate Professor and was the faculty chair for the ASLE program, including ASL Studies and Interpreter Education and World Language at Tulsa Community College. Glenna is currently an Oklahoma QAST State evaluator. For 12 years, she was a Division Director for a national deaf organization. She was a national logistic coordinator responsible for the management and operation unit and the Community Emergency Preparedness Information Network (CEPIN) training program.
She previously was one of several Deaf FEMA certified instructors for the CEPIN program with TDI to provide deaf culture and competency trainings to emergency responders and consumers with hearing loss. Glenna implemented the Oklahoma Domestic Violence Awareness Program for the Deaf and Hard of hearing communities and providers to improve communication and accessible services with funding from the US Department of Justice and Oklahoma District Attorney Council. She also worked with the Department of Health and Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust to develop and implement the Oklahoma Tobacco Awareness program for deaf and hard of hearing cultural needs. For several years, Glenna previously managed a telecommunication relay call center with 250+ employees for Ameritech and CSD in Ohio. She was the Oklahoma account manager for Sprint Telecommunication Relay Service during its early formation. In addition, Glenna serves on the subject matter expert team to review the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s FEMA/Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties’ Special Needs Planning Guidebook for Emergency Managers.
For the last 30 years, she had served with numerous roles on the Oklahoma Association of the Deaf and Oklahoma Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf. Glenna served on the City of Tulsa Mayor’s Commission on Concerns of Tulsans with Disabilities; Oklahoma Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse State Task Force member; Tulsa Community College Interpreter Training Advisory Committee Member. She previously was Governor’s appointee for Oklahoma State Department of Human Services Advisory Board, 1993 and Governor-appointed board member on Oklahoma State Independent Living Council, 1991-1994 and recently Governor Henry-appointed board member and elected secretary for Statewide Independent Living Council.
Glenna holds an MA in Sign Language Education from Gallaudet University and a BA-LS in Leadership Administration from the University of Oklahoma and resides in Owasso, Oklahoma. She is married to Timi Richardson and has three CODAs; Matt teaches as ASL Applied instructor at University of Tulsa, Kelsey advocates for the Indigenous Indian with her master’s in law and works within film/movie industry, and Jonathan works as Financial Analyst for Oklahoma Senator team at Oklahoma State Capitol. Glenna loves to relax at the lake house, boating and enjoying family time in her spare time.
