Krista Rey

Krista Rey, MSDE, was born profoundly deaf and utilizes listening and spoken language as her main mode of communication. She currently utilizes a cochlear implant and a hearing aid to hear. Her own journey with hearing loss inspired her to be an advocate for families and professionals that children with hearing loss can listen and talk.  Krista looks forward to connecting with other families and professionals and to create an important network to promote listening and spoken language. 

Krista is also a Teacher of the Deaf at a private listening and spoken language program for children with hearing loss in Northern California. In her spare time, she likes to walk, hike, cook, complete puzzles, and play with her hearing dog, Taylor

Vani Sugumaran

Vani Sugumaran, a mother of 2, has a personal connection to the world of hearing loss.

Her youngest son was born with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss. This initiated her son’s hearing journey with the belief that the deaf and hard of hearing can learn to hear and talk. Vani recognizes that for this journey to be successful for children like her son, and individuals of varying ages and degrees of hearing loss, it needs a community.  A community of hearing health professionals, educators and the all-important network of parents and looks forward to bringing the community together through the work of the Chapter. Vani is a trained Medical Laboratory Scientist, who currently works as a Marketing Manager, for a leading global Life Sciences and Clinical Diagnostics manufacturer, based in the North Bay Area.

Ronda Rufsvold

Ronda Rufsvold, is a Teacher of the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing and a listening and spoken language specialist who works with Krista Rey in Northern California.  Her current role is to support inclusion of students who are deaf or hard of hearing in mainstream settings.  She works with several school districts throughout Northern California. Her passion is to coach families and guide them toward their goals.  She also provides early intervention services via teletherapy to families with children with newly received cochlear implants. In her spare time, she enjoys pursuing research opportunities, writing research articles, and playing with her infant daughter, Lillian Louise.