A new assistant principal has joined the administrative team at Carlsbad High School. Since arriving on April 22nd, Charity Fisher has become a familiar face around campus and hopes to be a positive force for both students and staff.
Although Fisher is brand new to Carlsbad High School, she has a background in education that spans over twenty years. Fisher has held multiple roles in the education field from being a teacher, to assistant principal and even a mentor for new student teachers. She credits her education career to U.S. politics, in which she had a keen passion for.
“I had a great high school experience, but I really fell in love with this U.S. government politics class,” Fisher said. “I just thought, ‘This is so fascinating, and what if I could be a great teacher?’ So that’s when I got into education.”
Since then, Fisher has been a teacher in Washington D.C., where she taught U.S. government and politics for nineteen years. While living in D.C., Fisher studied at the Supreme Court, worked in the U.S. Capitol Hill district and took summers to do fellowships all to learn more and become a better teacher.
“Every summer, I did research, did fellowships, did different studies,” Fisher said. “I just love to learn, and I wanted to be the best teacher I could be. I thought that those experiences would help shape me to become a good educator.”
Fisher credits her relentless work ethic to her love for learning and developing into the best educator she can be. Although teaching can be a difficult profession, Fisher loves the influence she has over students, especially watching them grow throughout the year.
“Teaching is a challenging profession, but it’s so rewarding,” Fisher said. “The students may come to you not liking politics and not wanting to talk about it, but over time, you win them over as you talk about the world.”
After moving from D.C. to California, Fisher joined the staff at Sage Creek High School, where she continued teaching. Even as a teacher, Fisher felt the need to make a bigger change in the district, so she decided to move into administration.
“I felt the need to do more in our schools than I was currently doing, and maybe a need for change,” Fisher said. “That’s what really drove me to move into administration.”
After moving to Carlsbad High School, one of the first things Fisher noticed compared to past schools was the community and culture that students and teachers have built with one another. She feels that these bonds have contributed to the overall spirit and positivity on campus.
“My first impression is that there is just a great social community,” Fisher said. “I also think that students are proud to be a Lancer, and because they’re proud of that, I think it contributes to an
overwhelmingly positive school campus.”
Through her past experiences, Fisher has come to value the strong sense of community that students create on campus, and the positive impact it can have. As an assistant principal, fostering an inclusive school environment will be one of her top priorities.
“I really want an inclusive environment,” Fisher said. “Somewhere where students welcome everybody, regardless of their background, their identity or their ability.”
Fisher hopes students don’t see her as just an administrator, but as an upbeat, positivity inducing figure on campus. She says her goal is to support students and help create a school environment that is safe, welcoming and provides essential opportunities to guide students towards success.
“I’m not just here for discipline or redirection, but to make sure students have a great experience at Carlsbad High School,” Fisher said. “I want to make this to the best of my ability, a place where students want to be, where they feel safe, where they feel comfortable.”
