2014 Ambassadors Bios

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Gail Chodron is the Interdisciplinary Training Coordinator for the Wisconsin Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Program in the Waisman Center UCEDD, and Training Coordinator for Wisconsin's state autism demonstration grant (Connections Initiative). She is also a doctoral candidate in Public Health Sciences at the University of Toronto and a graduate of WI LEND. Gail has a young son diagnosed with autistic disorder. She has been working on the "Learn the Signs. Act Early Campaign." in her state since early 2009, and is an active member of Wisconsin's Act Early state team.  Gail states: "because of my personal experience, I care about equipping every parent, childcare, and health professional with tools to identify delays early and make appropriate referrals quickly to get children and families needed supports immediately." 

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Deana McGuire Buck has worked in the field of early childhood development for 25 years. Her professional education is in special education. For the past 22 years, she has worked at the Partnership for People with Disabilities, Virginia’s UCEDD, and currently serves as the Program Group Leader in Education/Early Childhood. While at the Partnership, she also administered the early intervention system in the city of Richmond for over 15 years.

Deana currently serves as the Principal Investigator for several statewide initiatives in Virginia designed to provide professional development to providers and administrators to improve supports and services for young children and their families. She has extensive experience in the design and provision of professional development, and regularly designs and provides training for a variety of audiences. She has also worked to develop her skills as a provider of professional development, including participating in training on the design and implementation of successful in-person and web-based instruction. Deana enjoys designing training content that is engaging for adult learners.

Deana has served as Virginia's Act Early Ambassador since 2012. She also provides administrative/leadership support to Virginia’s Act Early Team. This work has been a highlight of her professional career.