Allison Bosworth moved to the Valley as an infant, attending Hopi Elementary School, Ingleside Middle School, and Arcadia High School before venturing off to college to study teaching.
“Upon graduating, I began teaching second grade at my alma mater, Hopi, in 1999,” says Bosworth.
In 2007, Livia Rice joined Hopi as a kindergarten teacher.
“I got to know Allison professionally, and then was thrilled to have my own daughter in her class in 2013,” says Rice, noting their friendship continued to grow outside of school at a monthly pizza night with a group of teacher friends.
Fast-forward to 2020 and the struggle all teachers had amid the pandemic.
“To say the past 18 months have been tough would be an understatement,” says Bosworth. “It was just as hard on kids, who are experiencing learning gaps from lack of in-person interaction.”
As the pandemic dragged on, the teachers got closer.
“One night, I was telling Allison that if I won the lottery, I would open my own school,” says Rice. “Allison had the same dream.”
Casual discussion soon turned to the development of a business plan, and the duo finding a partner in Alexi Venneri, co-founder Digital Air Strike, whose son was in Rice’s class.
“When Livia approached me for business advice in December 2020, I shared an idea that I’d been thinking about launching for a few years: a supervised gaming and virtual reality hub for kids,” says Venneri. “Putting the two concepts together seemed like a natural fit.”
By spring 2021, the trio found a building in Old Town Scottsdale and began customizing it to fit their unique needs.
“In June, we opened our doors as The Vault Edutainment Hub,” says Bosworth, noting that she and Rice both exited Hopi to focus on the business full-time.
The membership-based program offers children from kindergarten to fifth grade a safe space for homework assistance and small group learning sessions with certified teachers, as well as supervised gaming and technology time, group reading, healthy snacks, traditional game play, computer skills development, and even arts and crafts.
“As a parent, I wanted a place where my son and his friends could get help learning how to safely game and even get help with homework after school. The Vault helps control the amount of time they are on devices, and saves parents from having to buy the latest computers or Oculus VR,” says Venneri.
The trio’s vision is to expand into other parts of Scottsdale and Arcadia, perhaps eventually expanding statewide. TheVaultEdutainment.com