Young Scholars Academy

Face of Childcare

Megan Garretson, Visionary & Owner; Ashley Beal, Executive Director; Amy Nelson, Instructional Specialist; and Bianca Rice, Administration Program Coordinator

Young Scholars Academy was born out of a passion for exceptional childcare and a vision for shaping the future of young minds. Visionary and owner, Megan Garretson, has over 13 years of experience in early childhood education, including roles as a teacher and director. Together with her team, they bring a unique perspective to the importance of nurturing growth and development. Guided by the Growth Mindset philosophy, the mission is to instill creativity, ethics, and critical thinking, ensuring every scholar thrives in a global society.

How is Young Scholars Academy involved in our community? I am a proud steering committee member for Geaux Far Louisiana which is a movement to ensure our children of Louisiana will geaux far. We also collaborate with EBR Ready Start Network, Ready Louisiana Coalition, Geaux Far Louisiana, 4PXP, Childcare Association of Louisiana, and more.

Megan and Ashley are graduates of the Louisiana Early Leaders Academy, and they were also Leader of the Year Finalists with the Louisiana Department of Education. Megan won the 2024 Provider of the Year award presented by 4PXP (For Providers by Providers), and we also host a variety of events as well as our annual Fall Fest.

In 2025, we will launch our new garden where our children will grow what our chef cooks. We have partnered with Pennington and their Greaux Healthy Initiative.

On the horizon for 2025 are parents night out, live music and dinner events, birthday parties, vendor showcases, scavenger hunts at festivals, and more! We hope to connect and build up our community.

What is special about the Greater Baton Rouge area to the team? Our most precious loved ones are here, and we want to ensure nothing but the best for them! We want to lead by example and show what building others up and creating a generational community looks like.

What products/services do you offer? Programs we offer: Birth-PreK4, Before & After Care (5yr-12yr) Holiday Care for current enrolled students, and Summer Camp.

For more information, visit ysabr.com.