Angie Madden works with a student in a home setting. Madden o ers a variety of classes, clubs and camps through The Bright Spot Learning Lab, located on Patchen Drive.
In the early days of the pandemic, Angie Madden, Ph.D., was teaching gifted and talented students at Cassidy Elementary. Overwhelmed with all the negative news in the world, she did some soul searching “to shift the focus back to things that were good,” she said.
Madden identified three areas that bring her intense joy: learning new things, teaching, and reading and writing literature, she said. She brainstormed how to bring these interests together.
In August 2021, she opened The Bright Spot Learning Lab in Patchen Village. “The Bright Spot was born to provide a little sunshine and be a bright spot in the day for everyone who walks in the door,” Madden said. “I made the space colorful, cozy and welcoming to reflect what The Bright Spot is all about.”
Angie Madden
Madden has two goals for the business — to help people build community around things they love and to give people a space to learn and try new things. “I do this by providing a variety of clubs and classes for children and adults that o er something unique from what you would get in a school setting,” she said.
After starting off with classes focused on reading and writing, Madden soon added art classes for children and adults. There are also monthly clubs for K-12, including a book club for kids, crafting club, LEGO club and the School of Rock, where the kids learn about songwriting, the types of instruments used in rock music and how to DJ.
“I place a big emphasis on fostering fun, literacy, creativity, communication, collaboration and resilience in what is offered,” she said.
Stephanie Parker, a local artist and librarian, teaches art classes at The Bright Spot. Parker facilitated a journaling workshop for kids in February and has a watercolor art class for adults in March. “Her approach is so unique, in that she does a perfect blend of weaving together mental health practices with art and making it all about relaxing, enjoying yourself, learning new art techniques and making beautiful things,” Madden said.
Before opening the doors last summer, Madden worked with the Small Business Development Center to solidify her ideas and put together a business plan. “They also provided a variety of classes and one-on-one coaching to help me learn the steps to setting up and running a business,” she said. “I am so thankful to them as an organization and to my coach for helping me learn the ropes. I go back to them often to get help with next steps.”
Her mom, dad and father-in-law also all own their own businesses, so she had great support in getting started. Madden is relying on her own creativity and listening to the kids and families she works with to provide offerings that are interesting to them.
Originally from Russell, Kentucky, Madden earned a degree in elementary education with a minor in music (she is a flautist) at Transylvania University. “I fell in love with Lexington and the people I met there and decided to make it my home,” she said.
Over the past two decades, she has taught elementary school in Frankfort and Lexington, completed her master’s degree in elementary education, earned an endorsement for teaching reading and writing at the University of Kentucky and completed her doctorate in literacy education at UK. She was a professor at Eastern Kentucky University, where she taught graduate and undergraduate literacy education courses for practicing and preservice teachers.
At UK, she completed the Kentucky Reading Project and the Bluegrass Writing Project, two intensive professional development programs for teachers, and “fell head-over-heels in love with writing and teaching writing and reading,” she said, “and that passion continues to fuel my work to this day.”
Madden still teaches on an adjunct basis at EKU in the graduate gifted and literacy programs. She is also a consultant for Hart Education, which provides professional development for teachers.
At The Bright Spot Learning Lab, Madden teaches classes on comic book writing and a class she calls Literartsy, combining art and literature. She also has an ongoing homeschool group on Mondays offering literacy, social and STEM enrichment activities.
In addition to classes and clubs, Madden provides one-on-one coaching “to help kids accomplish their goals as readers and writers, which includes everything from fostering a love for reading and writing to writing their own series of novels.”
Her plans include offerings in drama and filmmaking, fantasy writing and more art, as well as author events by Kentucky children’s authors and summer camps.
“The support of the families that have attended classes at The Bright Spot has been amazing and warms my heart daily,” Madden said. “They keep coming back and spreading the word. They are the reason I love what I do and want to keep The Bright Spot glowing and growing.”
Learn more about The Bright Spot at www.thebrightspotky.com.