Sharon Ferrell Assistive Technologies Professional, St. Luke’S Rehabilitation Institute

Personal: 41, three children, one grandchild.

Education: Degree in computer engineering technology from Eastern Washington University.

Salary: Between $25,000 and $35,000, depending on the organization and location.

Job duties: She heads St. Luke’s assistive technology department, helping people with various disabilities and physical challenges with computer access, environmental controls and communication.

Technologies used: Everything from “Clapper”-type switches to voice-activated computer programs.

Most exciting development: “The biggest thing in the last two or three years is the increase in speech-recognition therapy. Before, it was very time consuming and labor-intensive for many people to operate a computer.”

Best part of job: “Almost everybody that you work with for a period of time ends up a friend.”

Biggest challenge: “Funding is the number one issue across the board.”

Best patient response: “I can.”