Donna Cates

Donna Cates became involved with BI in 2013 when she agreed to participate in a 12-session planning process created to help the agency develop services to better meet the immediate needs of the region’s rapidly expanding population of young adults with autism. Donna’s experience as a mother of a son with autism complemented the team of behaviorists, researchers, and BI staff, and she worked tirelessly to help ensure that no stone was left unturned when it came to research into best practices and effective approaches being implemented by experts such as the Mind Institute at UC Davis. Donna’s engagement continued as BI raised funds to build its state of the art Passport to Independence program, and her son Geordi was among the first class of participants. After serving as Board President, Donna is now a member of the board’s Executive Committee where she plays a role in ensuring a smooth leadership transition. Donna and her husband Bryan live in Occidental. Together, they have owned and operated Telecommunications Designs, a network integrator for Fortune 500 companies, for 25 years. Donna previously spent six years on the board of the Harmony Education Foundation, where she helped raise funds for her son’s school. In recognition of her many contributions, Donna received BI’s Volunteer of the Year Award in 2014.