Advantage Early Learning Academy
History
Growing With the Communities We Serve
At Advantage Early Learning Academy, we believe every community deserves access to quality child care and early education. That belief is at the heart of why we do what we do.
We don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all approach. Every community is different, every family has different needs, and every AELA location reflects the community it calls home. We look for communities where quality child care is needed, listen to the families who live and work there, and create programs designed to meet those needs.
As communities grow and change, we grow with them. Whether that means expanding access to infant and toddler care, creating opportunities for preschool and Pre-K education, supporting school-age families, or developing programs and partnerships unique to a community, our goal is to be a resource families can depend on.
For us, opening a child care center isn’t simply about choosing a location. It’s about finding a need and becoming part of the community.
We are committed to creating safe, nurturing environments where children can learn and thrive, families feel supported, and our team can make a meaningful difference.
Because when children have access to quality early education, the impact reaches far beyond the walls of a classroom.
Serving families. Strengthening communities. Growing together.
Our Story
Built With Purpose. Growing Where We’re Needed.
The story of Advantage Early Learning Academy isn’t simply a story about opening child care centers. It’s a story about recognizing needs, finding solutions, and believing that access to quality child care can make an entire community stronger.
Every AELA location has a different story because every community we serve is different.
New Republic Industries is born.
In May 2018, three brothers came together with a shared goal: to build a successful company that could also make a meaningful and lasting difference in the lives of others.
They formed New Republic Industries and began searching for the right opportunity - something that could grow, create meaningful careers, strengthen communities, and serve a greater purpose.
At the time, they did not know exactly where that path would lead.
They simply knew they wanted to build something that mattered.
The right opportunity finds us.
In June 2018, the brothers entered the world of early childhood education when they took over an existing child care program formerly known as My Second Home.
They brought leadership experience, an eagerness to learn, and an ambitious vision for what the program could become.
From that opportunity, Advantage Early Learning Academy was born.
What began as one child care center quickly became something much bigger - a commitment to providing quality early education, supporting working families, creating opportunities for employees, and becoming a trusted part of the community.
Growth came faster than expected.
As enrollment increased, so did the needs of our families. One building was no longer enough.
In May 2019, AELA expanded into a second location next door, creating additional space dedicated to serving school-age children.
The expansion allowed us to continue caring for children as they grew while giving families the consistency of remaining with a program they already knew and trusted.
Our enrollment was growing. Our team was growing. And the vision for what Advantage Early Learning Academy could become was beginning to take shape.
The COVID-19 pandemic changes child care forever.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed the landscape of child care.
Families, educators, employers, and child care providers faced challenges unlike anything the industry had experienced before.
But AELA wasn't ready to give up on its dream.
Instead, we adapted.
We learned.
And we kept moving forward.
Through one of the most challenging periods in early childhood education, our commitment to children, families, employees, and communities became even stronger.
Advantage Early Learning Academy comes to Marysville.
Near the end of 2020, an opportunity emerged to bring AELA to a new community through the acquisition of our Marysville location.
In January 2021, Marysville officially became part of the Advantage family.
The center quickly grew, but something equally important was happening behind the scenes. As AELA expanded, so did the opportunities for our employees.
New leaders emerged, team members stepped into larger roles, and positions that began as jobs developed into long-term careers and "forever homes" within AELA.
Advantage Early Learning Academy comes to Gahanna.
In December 2022, another opportunity for growth brought AELA to Gahanna. .
Enrollment grew rapidly, and Gahanna reinforced an important lesson that continues to guide how we grow: The best way to serve a community is to listen to the people already in it.
Learn what families need. Support the people serving them. Then build from there.
A community in need of child care found a partner in AELA.
Families in Marion were facing a growing challenge: there simply was not enough child care available to meet the needs of the community.
A shortage of child care affects more than individual families. It affects employers, the local workforce, economic development, and the strength of the community as a whole.
Through a partnership with The Naz in Marion, Advantage Early Learning Academy established a new program and began serving local families in May 2023.
The response showed just how great the need was. Enrollment grew faster than at any previous AELA location, and Marion quickly became another example of what can happen when organizations and communities work together to support families.
In August 2024, AELA partnered with Pleasant Elementary to provide before- and after-school care for students.
Together, we saw an opportunity to do something more.
The program could also support children attending Pleasant's part-time preschool program by providing the additional care working families needed - without requiring their children to leave the school building.
For families, that meant something incredibly valuable.
Children could learn, play, and receive the care they needed throughout their day in one familiar environment.
Pleasant became another example of what is possible when schools, child care providers, and communities work together to create solutions centered around children and families.
Another community. Another need. Another opportunity to serve.
In 2025, Advantage Early Learning Academy was approached once again—this time about coming to Findlay.
Like other communities we had served, Findlay was experiencing challenges surrounding the availability of child care and the number of options available to local families.
We began searching for a way to help.
AELA found a new home within First Presbyterian Church, creating the foundation for our next location and our next community partnership.
And once again, we weren't simply opening another center.
We were answering a need.
What started with an idea has grown into a team, a family of centers, and a mission that continues to move forward.
Today, Advantage Early Learning Academy serves children and families across multiple Ohio communities - but growth has never changed what matters most to us.
Every center has its own children, families, employees, traditions, partnerships, and story. That is something we are proud of.
We believe the strongest child care programs are built by listening to families, investing in employees, forming meaningful community partnerships, and never losing sight of the children at the center of everything we do.
And we are not finished.
As AELA looks toward the future, we will continue seeking opportunities to bring quality child care to communities that need it while creating places where children can thrive, families can feel supported, and employees can build meaningful careers.
This is our story so far - and we are still growing.
Serving Families. Strengthening Communities.