Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Madeline Rochelle . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Madeline , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

As a wife, mom and working woman, the pandemic brought about some inherent challenges. I left my job as a public school educator, before my daughter was born, in order to focus attention on her and our family. As our daughter grew, and the pandemic began, my husband and I tried to figure out how to enrich our daughter’s life with social and emotional opportunities, while still having to isolate from people around us. Suddenly, we couldn’t see family or friends, and we wondered how we would provide this important cornerstone of learning and growth for our daughter. I had the opportunity to work with a local Austin family, in a small nature pod (small class), which gave me the opportunity to step into the role of “teacher” again. It allowed me to be near our daughter, and allowed her to interact in a new environment with wonderful friends. It was such a breath of fresh air as an educator to have a small class of children, where I could focus my attention on each child, how they learned most effectively and their unique qualities. We decided to keep the pod going near our home in the East Austin area and developed, Xpresso Beans Kinder Pod. Keeping a small class of 6-8 students, we explore learning through play, nature, practical learning, group collaboration, art and exploration. As we developed into a business, we have kept the integrity of a small classroom, that focuses on how children learn the best. Our pod focuses on an inherent purpose of gentle teaching, social/emotional growth and development and play based learning. While we have kept it small, we are excited to make a big impact for those that are in our community!

Madeline , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Madeline Rochelle, and I am an educator, dancer, yogi, wife and mother to an amazing family. My background starts in early childhood education with a Bachelor’s in elementary education from Sam Houston State University. I worked with Kindergarten and 2nd grade, before taking a break from the Texas school system, when my daughter Addelynn was born. My passion for education comes from a lengthy background in teaching preschool dance, as well as teaching in the public school system and private daycare. Currently I am studying for my Master’s degree in Human Services at Regent University to incorporate dance, yoga, mental health/wellness and early childhood education under one roof. My husband Jarell, is co-owner of this business also, and received his Masters of Dance and Social Justice from the University of Texas in Austin. Our kiddos love dance class with Mr. J!

I love working with students not only to build confidence in their academic skills but their social and emotional skills as well! As a mom and teacher, one of the problems I have seen in classrooms is simply their size. When I taught second grade, I was in charge of teaching forty-four students, up keeping their grades, knowing them as individuals, making sure they were learning effectively and much more. I felt quite defeated, many days! There are many amazing teachers in the classroom, who are able to do that and so much more, and for them I am in awe! I created the focus of a small classroom, to give younger students the ability to interact with their peers, and practice their social/emotional development, while still receiving daily, one on one attention in their learning. I believe that this small scale will change the game for students, and help them soar!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

When starting this business, I used social media platforms and different groups on those platforms to advertise my business. I figured the best way to reach local families, would be through platforms that hosted local individuals. As we have been in the community over a year, I still use social media to reach out to others, but word of mouth is has been the most powerful tool!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

We started the business self-funded, as my husband and I were transitioning out of jobs, into new opportunities. Starting this business was very risky, because we did not know if others would value it the way the we did. Ultimately, we knew we had to take the risk and go all in, because the value of pouring into the children of the community was so important!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.xpressobeanskinderpod.com

Image Credits
Natalia Burrows Photography