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Kim
Avendt - Director
 Kim Avendt
is the Director of The Learning Tree North.
She first started at The Learning Tree in 1993 as a Co-Op from Franklin High School. After graduation
she went on to attend Eastern Michigan University where she took classes in Early Childhood and Child Development.
Kim came back each summer and worked at the center. In 2001
she came back for good and started as a preschool assistant, quickly
moving up to become one of the Kindergarten head teachers.
In 2002 she was promoted to Staff Trainer and within a few months become the Assistant Director. In April of 2005
she became the Director of The Learning Tree North. She is
a great example that The Learning Tree strives to promote within!
When she is not at The Learning Tree she loves spending time with
her husband and her daughter and newborn son.
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Erica
Bishop - Assistant Director
 Erica joined the Learning Tree team in August of 2005 as an assistant to the Regional Director. A few months later, she took a position as the interim assistant director at Livonia North while Kim, the director, was on maternity leave. Soon after, her love for children led her to the classroom, where she become the assistant teach in the Toddler 2 classroom in February of 2006.
With a promotion to the Lead Toddler Teacher position a few months later, Erica’s passion for children and contributions to the Learning Tree grew. In addition to being the Lead Toddler Teacher at North, she also served as day camp staff during the summer, which afforded her the opportunity to work with children of all ages.
In April of 2010, Erica became the Learning Tree Center Floater, in which she traveled between different centers, working in various classrooms. In January 2011, Erica returned to the Learning Tree North where she was offered, and joyfully accepted, the Assistant Director position.
Erica holds a CDA (Child Development Associates) in Infant/Toddler Care from Washtenaw Community College. She is also pursuing her Associates degree in Child and Family Services from Schoolcraft College.
In her spare time, she enjoys the outdoors, including rock climbing, mountain biking, rollerblading, hiking, and many sports. She also enjoys spending time with her friends and family, especially her niece and 3 nephews.
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Karen
Ballard - Regional Director
Karen Ballard is the Regional Director of The Learning Tree
Child Care Centers.
Karen began her career with The Learning Tree in August of
1998 as a Head Teacher in a toddler classroom. Her passion for early
childhood education was fueled in that class and her love for children and
their families grew. In June of 2002 she switched gears a bit and transferred
to The South Lyon Learning Tree as Director. It was as a Director that
she
became enthusiastic about watching children and teachers grow
and learn. In December of 2003 she was given the
opportunity to be Regional Director, overseeing the operations of all three
Learning Trees.
As Regional Director
she has the pleasure of traveling from
center to center throughout the week, talking with parents, training the
administration at each center and still finds time to do what
her heart loves
most- play with the children. She graduated from William
Tyndale College in December of 1998 with a degree in Early Childhood
Education and is continuing her education at Madonna University.
She looks
forward to being a part of each child’s early learning
experience and knows
that The Learning Tree is the perfect fit for you and your family.
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