Mary Hanson

Mary's passion for special education can be traced back to volunteering in a class for children with autism when she was in elementary school. She was born in Milwaukee, WI but grew up predominantly in Raleigh where she continued to work with children in a variety of settings and volunteer in many capacities with different organizations.

Mary has worked with children from preschool through high school and served as a one-on-one for a student with disabilities for several years. She helped to plan, raise money for and build an accessible playground for children with physical disabilities in Henderson County and served on the Special Needs Sports Board of Directors. Those experiences prepared her to teach and mentor children in a variety of settings throughout her career and help countless numbers of children realize and reach their own goals and potential.

Mary is a graduate of Appalachian State University, where she majored in Special Education with a concentration in Learning Disabilities. When Mary is not busy with her three beautiful children and her dog, Sammy, she can be found hiking, climbing, traveling and adventuring or snuggled up at home with a variety of books.