Our Staff

A staff of professionals who have been touched by disability.

At CODSN we use a peer-delivery model, which means that each of our staff has in some way been touched by disability. On this page, you’ll connect with our wonderful team and learn about why they’re so passionate about serving people with disabilities, including those in their own families.
click here to connect with our team over the phone

Dianna Hansen

Co-Founder and

Executive Director

Dianna is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Central Oregon Disability Support Network (CODSN). In addition to her role at CODSN, she is actively involved in several local and state boards. Notably, Dianna currently serves as a governor-appointed member on the Oregon Public Health Advisory Board.

Dianna is a 2010 graduate of the Partners in Policymaking program, holds a degree from the Beegle Poverty Institute, and has previously served as the Chair of the State Interagency Coordinating Council.

Dianna brings a wealth of expertise to her work. She is a certified Person-Centered Plan Facilitator, a Certified Youth Mental Health First Aid Trainer, and has received training in Restorative Practices through the IIRP. Her professional background includes extensive experience in business management, marketing, and accounting fields.

What truly sets Dianna apart is her personal commitment to the cause. As a parent of a daughter with Down syndrome, she brings a unique and deeply personal perspective to her work. It was this lived experience that motivated her to establish CODSN in response to the scarcity of resources and information available in Central and Eastern Oregon communities. Dianna is dedicated to supporting, advocating for, educating, and equipping individuals, families, and professionals in the field of disability.

Jenny Cavarno

Program Director

Jenny has three children and brings her lived experience as a parent raising a son with a developmental disability to her work at CODSN as Program Director. Jenny brings a wealth of knowledge to the team at CODSN as a parent who has navigated her son graduating high school, the transition program, and having a job with supported employment. Jenny has many years of experience in advocacy both in the medical and educational fields that has led her to have a voice not only for her son, but also for Oregon families and their children that experience disability. Often her advocacy work has taken her to meetings at the state level and across Oregon to share her perspective as a family member.

Jenny is a Partners in Policymaking graduate and is certified in Person-Centered Path training. She has also received training in Poverty Informed Care, Supported Decision-Making, Trauma-Informed Care and additional youth training. She comes to CODSN with experience serving as Program Coordinator and Director at FACT Oregon (Oregon’s Parent Training & Information center). Jenny is passionate in her work and believes that all people have the right to a happy and whole life.

Shela Buerger

Office Manager

Shela is a Central Oregon native who lives in Redmond, Oregon with her husband Ron. After raising 4 boys, whom she homeschooled for 15 years, she went to work as an Educational Assistant with the Redmond School District. She worked at Sage Elementary for 2 years and then moved to Ridgeview High School. This is where she found her passion working with students with disabilities, and when she realized the importance of having an education that fully includes all students.

As the Records Manager for RVHS’s SPED department for 3 years, she became very familiar with the IEP process and the importance of having both the parents and students involved to make the best plan for the education of the students. Having a child with dyslexia, she also brings experience in advocating for her own child’s support needs with a 504 plan.

Shela is very excited to join CODSN and be involved in connecting with and supporting families as they navigate raising their children with disabilities.

Callie Kackley

Lead Program Coordinator

Callie received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and a Minor in Sociology and graduated with honors from Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon. She brings work experience in the non-profit administrative field as well as lived experience as a parent raising a daughter with Down syndrome to her work at CODSN as Program Coordinator. Since finding out at birth that Mia had Down syndrome, Callie knew that Mia’s life would change them in incredible ways and transform their community.

Callie is a graduate of NWDSA’s 2015 Kindergarten Inclusion Cohort and the 2018 Strong Start Parent Leadership Program. She is Youth Mental Health First Aid trained and has received training in Trauma Informed Care, Poverty Informed Care, Latino Outreach, Person-Centered Planning and Supported-Decision Making. Callie sits on the State Advisory Council on Special Education with the Oregon Department of Education and also represents CODSN on the Developmental Disability Coalition. Callie is passionate for for ensuring people are fully included both in education and whole life and she is committed to paving a path for all children to belong in meaningful ways in their schools, communities and relationships. She loves connecting with and supporting families to have high expectations, develop a strong vision for the future and to understand their rights as they navigate raising their kids with disabilities.

Stefany Cunningham

Lead Program Coordinator Volunteer Coordinator

Stefany was born and raised in Central Oregon where she graduated summa cum laude from OSU-Cascades. While she studied kinesiology, her love of learning guided her to explore additional concentrations in psychology, and early childhood development and education. While exploring these concentrations, she expanded her knowledge in: Infant and child development; human lifespan development; family studies; families in poverty; family, school, and community collaboration; positive psychology; and social psychology. After college, Stefany’s heart led her to work in early childhood education where she gained experience in caring for, and supporting, children and families with varied support needs.

Stefany’s passion for life-long learning drives her to endlessly seek out continuing education courses and books concerning child development, self-regulation, neurodiversity, augmentative and alternative communication, and supporting all children in becoming self-determined and life-long learners. At the heart of Stefany’s love for learning is her bright, funny, and courageous son, who is neurodivergent and has complex communication needs. Stefany values differences, the voices of self-advocates within the disability community, and her life as a mom. Each day, she aims to learn something new that empowers her to provide her son – and all individuals with complex support needs – the support, care, and advocacy they deserve.

Stephanie Sullivan

Program Coordinator- Klamath County

Stephanie Sullivan’s journey as a parent has been uniquely challenging and rewarding. Her son Owen was born in 2015 with cerebral palsy, autism, and other developmental delays requiring special care and attention. Despite the challenges, Stephanie and her husband decided to open their hearts and home to even more children by becoming resource parents and adopting two additional children with special needs. Through her work with her own children and many foster children, Stephanie has developed a strong skill set in advocating for children with disabilities. 

Stephanie grew up in Central Oregon where she earned her dental assisting degree and then later pursued her degree in Criminal Justice. She currently resides in Klamath County. She is resourceful, friendly, and finds joy in helping others. Her decision to become a resource parent and adopt two additional children is a true testament to her unwavering commitment to the nurturing and caring of others.

 

Nichole Adamson

Program Coordinator –

Harney County

Nichole brings a lifetime of experience both personally and professionally from Clackamas County to Harney County. Professionally, Nichole has over 20 years of experience working in Special Education as a one-on-one and classroom aid. She has worked in both the dental and medical fields with her experience including patient care and coordination, internal and external marketing, donor development and volunteer recruitment and coordination. 

Raising 3 children, her oldest daughter Emma was diagnosed with Prader Willi Syndrome at age 12. For the past 22 years Nichole has learned to navigate the world of developmental disabilities and orthopedic impairments from birth to young adulthood. Most recently her and Emma, along with family and friends, have created a home-school transitions program, with job development and coaching in their very, very rural community of SE Oregon. 

Nichole is looking forward to bringing her passion for community and serving others to CODSN. She is excited to learn more about the members of her community and how we can continue to support Harney County.

Christi Zorrilla Soto

Spanish Bilingual

Program Coordinator

Christi was raised by her mother, whose experience with disability shaped her understanding of the challenges and strengths within families navigating disability. Raised in this environment, she later experienced the broader world outside her home and saw how accessibility—or the lack of it—shapes people’s opportunities and experiences. Christi holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Master’s in Education, and brings extensive experience in arts education and nonprofit program management, having developed programs that center diverse voices and foster community connection. She is passionate about creating spaces where people of all abilities feel seen, supported, and empowered to explore their potential.

Yamilex Gutierrez

Spanish Bilingual

Program Assistant

Yamilex brings strength to the CODSN team with skills as a bi-lingual staff member and is fluent in both English and Spanish. Yamilex comes from a small town and brings the perspective of living in a rural community as well as lived experience to this work.

Yamilex has received training in Poverty Informed Care with Dr. Donna Beegle, Trauma Informed Care and Latino Outreach. She loves supporting people through providing Wraparound Services to those affected by COVID-19 by implementing CODSN’s work as an OHA Community Based Organization on the ground in Lake and Klamath counties. She is especially skilled at providing support to families who speak Spanish. Yamilex believes that we have a lot to learn from those who are not like us and she is always looking to learn more.  We are grateful to have her on the team at CODSN.

Jen Martinez

Program Assistant

Jen is an Oregon native and brings experience in Office Administration and experience as an Educational Assistant at the Alyce Hatch Center to the CODSN team. As an Educational Assistant, she had the pleasure of working with preschool children with developmental delays and their families and this opportunity helped her to learn about special education and the available resources for families. Jen also brings lived experience advocating for her own children’s support needs in helping them to access mental health supports, speech therapy and IEPs for learning needs.

Jen is certified in Youth Mental Health First Aid and has received training in Poverty Informed care, Trauma Informed Care, Working with Native Families and additional youth training. Jen strives to connect with and support kids and their families on their unique journeys.