Founded by Co-owners Amanda Comage-Trower and Laneic Lavalle, ECEA was originally named Real Imaginations AZ and founded in 2014 before being reorganized as Early Childhood Educators Academy in 2017.

We've combined our years of experience in the early childhood industry to support and develop strong leaders, provide training that leaves a lasting impact on educators, and help create high-quality environments and programs for children to thrive.

Our Vision is to reignite the passion for early childhood education, be loud advocates for play in the classroom, and equip teachers with the skills they need with hands-on, engaging professional development.

The early years are some of the most crucial years of development for young children and we want to make sure that every educator that decides to take on the monumental role has the tools, knowledge, resources, and confidence they need to succeed in their classrooms and help their students thrive.

Afterall, the teacher’s well-being and professional growth are directly linked to the quality of care our children are receiving.

We found that educators were entering the field with a passion for working with young kids but struggling to "learn-as-they-go" in such a fast-paced and demanding career. We also see our veteran teachers leaving the field burnt-out, disillusioned, and underappreciated.

Years in the industry have shown us that:

• New educators are being left to their own devices in sink-or-swim scenarios, and Experienced educators are frustrated having to train new teachers when they're also trying to manage their classrooms

• Teachers are forced to take training courses that they feel have no real-life application in their classrooms or don't receive support implementing what they've learned

• Directors and owners often have little to no support with leadership development, and managing staff, and are overwhelmed with staffing issues.

• Children aren’t receiving quality, developmentally-appropriate care despite providers best intentions because of the gap in professional development

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