IN Fox Chapel Area Winter 2016 | Page 31

SPONSORED CONTENT BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT SPONSORED CONTENT LEARNING WITH EXCEPTIONAL OUTCOMES The LEO Academy for Early Education L ike children, sometimes a business will hit developmental milestones early, and that’s exactly what happened with the LEO Academy for Early Education. And, like a mother, owner and director Christa Totedo couldn’t be more proud. A lifelong Fox Chapel local, Totedo always had a dream of opening her own child care facility in the area. “This is all that I have done. I have never had an interest in any other jobs. I started working in child care as an assistant teacher at the age of 16 and never looked back,” she said. Totedo was the director of the LEO School in Aspinwall for nearly three years, and, in that time, the school’s waiting list was hamstrung by the fact that the physical space limited it to just six students at any given time. The LEO School was growing out of its britches and Totedo took action. “I decided to take over the ownership, tweak the name and expand it,” she explains. Today, the LEO Academy is housed in a 7,200-square-foot learning annex in Blawnox, complete with indoor and outdoor play areas, creative classroom for arts and sensory education, and an in-house library. The LEO Academy has a strong belief in the importance of early literacy and welcomes a visiting librarian from the Cooper-Siegel Community Library monthly for storytime. “We now have a capacity of 89 children, but, because of our belief in small class sizes, this building will be capped at 60 enrolled students. This will allow us to separate the children into the smallest group sizes possible,” Totedo said. The LEO Academy isn’t just a Pre-K program, it takes children from ages 6 weeks through Pre-K, and adheres to the Pennsylvania state learning standards, allowing it to individualize learning and instruction for each student. “We have a curriculum that’s designed for all ages, including the infants,” notes Totedo. The LEO Academy currently has three other teachers besides Totedo on staff who either have their bachelor’s degrees and are certified to teach elementary education or who are working toward a degree in the field of early education. Everyone is certified in CPR and has criminal background FBI and state clearances. Students are in the best hands possible while they are at the LEO Academy. And, unlike other preschool programs that may currently have a waiting list, the LEO Academy is actively enrolling students. Plus it offers drop-in care for parents who may just need a day here or there. “A lot of other day cares put a minimum on how many days the kids can come, but we offer family-based or needs-based care,” Totedo says. “If families only need two days a week, we do that. Somewhere else, they may be stuck paying for the other days they don’t need care for.” Open weekdays from 6:45 a.m. to 6 p.m., the LEO Academy also makes it easy for parents who work to get their children to and from preschool with plenty of time to spare. For more information on the LEO Academy, or to schedule a tour to see if the school is right for your child, go to the website at theleoacademy.com, or call directly at 412.426.9085. It is located at 237 Sixth Street in Blawnox, 15238. You can also find the school on Facebook at facebook.com/ theleoacademy. The LEO Academy will be holding an open house on January 7 at 11 a.m. for any and all interested families to come and check it out. Parents who mention this article when registering their child, through February 28, will have the registration fee waived. Fox Chapel Area | Winter 2016 | icmags.com 29