Ann Fisher is the mother of two sons, both of whom were born prematurely. After their birth, her sons were followed by Child Development Watch and then were referred to the Smyrna School District upon reaching their 3rd birthdays. When her oldest son became eligible for district special education services for a developmental language delay, Ms. Fisher volunteered in the district’s early childhood special education program and later was hired as a paraprofessional in that program. With a desire to learn more about educating young children with developmental delays, she returned to college full time while working full time and raising her young sons. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Education at Wilmington University, graduating summa cum laude. Ms. Fisher also was inducted into the Wilmington University Chi Phi Chapter of Kappa Delta Pi, an international honor society in education. After graduation, she was employed as a special education teacher in the Early Education Program of the Colonial School District for nine years and was instrumental in implementing the Conscious Discipline approach there. Over her approximately 20 years in early childhood education, Ms. Fisher has advocated for the increasing importance of early identification of developmental delays and disabilities in young children. As a result of these and many others’ efforts, more children are being provided early childhood special education services to help prepare them for kindergarten. However, Ms. Fisher believes there still is a lack of adequate support for students who require the greater levels of accommodations, and she has been very vocal about the disservice that she perceives is happening to these children. When she first joined the GACEC, Ms. Fisher served as a parent of children with disabilities, but she now serves as a self-advocate with an anxiety disorder and is the current Chairperson of the Council.

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