Born and raised in Santa Barbara, California Brianna is thrilled to give back to her hometown community through Blind Fitness. Brianna’s wide range of outdoor interests and experience combined with her Orientation and Mobility (O&M) degree help bring a unique and bold approach to offering sports and fitness opportunities to people who are blind or have low vision.

Brianna’s passion for the outdoors and sports led her to participate on both the collegiate triathlon and cycling teams during her studies at the University of CA at Berkeley. After graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in Psychology, she returned to Santa Barbara to help manage her family’s local business and became a volunteer at the local Braille Institute. It was during her time as a volunteer that she decided to pursue a profession in O&M, and went on to earn a Masters degree in Special Education from Cal State LA with a specialization in O&M. Brianna loves O&M because it can be used as a tool for accessing the outdoors and being active, while helping people gain the confidence and skills needed to travel independently.

Brianna began her career as an O&M specialist at the Earle Baum Center for the Blind in Santa Rosa, CA and then later at the Braille Institute in Santa Barbara. During her time at the Braille Institute, Brianna launched a running program by partnering with a local gym and training their volunteers to be sighted guides. She also taught an accessible yoga class for her student’s at the Braille Institute, where she was able to incorporate her yoga teacher training background while infusing her skills as an O&M specialist. In 2020, Brianna helped pioneer the Braille Institute’s first ever virtual Move-A-Thon to promote physical fitness among the blind and low vision community during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Brianna is known as a pioneer in her field, offering a bold and adventurous approach to Orientation and Mobility training. She likes to think of it as “Orientation and Mobility training with a twist.”