Sheila Holas advances brain-based early childhood education through Blue Ribbon Results Academy

By AI, Created 11:55 AM UTC, May 22, 2026, /AGP/ – Influential Women is featuring Sheila Holas, EdD, founder and executive director of Blue Ribbon Results Academy, for her work in neuroscience-informed preschool education, curriculum development, and school leadership. Holas says her model is designed to improve school readiness and expand access to high-quality early childhood learning in Virginia and beyond.

Why it matters: - Sheila Holas is positioning brain-based early childhood education as a scalable model for improving school readiness, teacher practice, and family engagement. - Blue Ribbon Results Academy reports that 95% of its students enter kindergarten reading at or above a first-grade level. - Holas is also building curriculum and training systems that could extend beyond her campuses into schools, ministries, and university programs.

What happened: - Influential Women featured Sheila Holas, EdD, founder and executive director of Blue Ribbon Results Academy. - Holas is based in Dumfries, Virginia, and has more than 37 years of experience in early childhood education, school leadership, teacher development, and curriculum design. - Her career began as a preschool teacher in a Title I school. - She later served as a teacher specialist, assistant principal, and principal in Norfolk Public Schools. - Her school leadership helped a campus earn National Blue Ribbon School recognition. - She founded Blue Ribbon Results Academy as a brain-based preschool model built around neuroscience-informed instruction, high-yield teaching strategies, family engagement, and data-driven practices.

The details: - Holas created Teaching Preschoolers With the Brain in Mind, a fully scripted, neuroscience-informed curriculum and educational ecosystem approved by the Virginia Department of Education. - The system combines brain-based learning principles, executive functioning, differentiated instruction, ongoing assessment, family engagement, teacher coaching, and instructional frameworks. - At both Blue Ribbon Results Academy campuses, teachers using the curriculum scored above the Virginia state average in all three VQB5 CLASS Interaction domains: Emotional Support, Classroom Organization, and Instructional Support. - Holas is also the author and developer of the Amazed! Children’s Ministry Curriculum Series, a Christ-centered discipleship system for children and adolescents. - The Amazed! series includes elementary, middle school, and high school curriculum pathways. - Holas is developing university-level coursework, teacher training programs, and implementation models focused on early childhood instruction grounded in brain science. - She is expanding both the Teaching Preschoolers With the Brain in Mind ecosystem and the Amazed! series through teacher training, leadership development, university partnerships, and national and international implementation efforts. - Holas earned advanced degrees from Nova Southeastern University and the University of Virginia, with concentrations in educational leadership and brain-based learning practices. - The Governor of Virginia appointed Holas to the Virginia Interagency Coordinating Council. - That council supports statewide efforts tied to early intervention and high-quality education. - Holas also supports St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and serves in children and youth ministry at her church. - She describes faith, integrity, excellence, service, perseverance, and legacy as her core values. - Holas says her best career advice was to know her purpose and not let others define her value or limit her vision. - She encourages young women in education to lead with confidence, pursue excellence, and focus on legacy over immediate recognition.

Between the lines: - Holas’ work blends public education, curriculum design, faith-based instruction, and leadership development into one operating model. - The combination of Virginia Department of Education approval and above-average classroom interaction scores gives the program a stronger credibility signal than a typical early childhood initiative. - Her push to align policy, teacher training, and classroom practice with neuroscience reflects a broader shift toward evidence-based instruction in early learning. - The ministry curriculum suggests Holas sees educational impact as extending beyond schools into churches and family systems.

What’s next: - Holas is continuing to expand teacher training, leadership development, and university partnerships around her curriculum systems. - Blue Ribbon Results Academy is expected to keep scaling its brain-based preschool model nationally and internationally. - The Amazed! curriculum series will continue to grow across grade levels as Holas develops additional implementation pathways. - Learn more about Dr. Sheila Holas