In January, owner and director Mike Irene opened Leander Learning Center, a creative learning environment where young students can freely explore and experiment with art, media arts, music and language.

Irene, who also owns Leander Music School, established the learning center because he felt the need to expand to other areas of creative learning, he said. Leander Learning Center offers lessons on character drawing, anime art, music production and recording on a Digital Audio Workstation, music theory, 3D animation, and Spanish language.

“We’re here to support creative learners,” Irene said.

Irene began playing music when he was 6 years old and continued with music education throughout his youth and in college, where he studied at Berklee College of Music. He started a music school in 2011, which he first ran from his home.

Staff at Leander Learning Center offer customized tutoring plans for the students and build curriculum designed to meet the student where they are, Irene said. The center primarily hosts small-group classes, and Irene said the interactive aspect of classes is what parents like the most about Leander Learning Center.


The learning center aims to be involved in the community, such as having students perform at the Old Town Street and the Old Town Christmas festivals. The center also held food drives for Hill Country Community Ministries, a local nonprofit organization that helps those in need throughout the county. Irene said he plans to start donating funds for every student who enrolls in Leander Learning Center in the near future.

Irene said since the brick-and-mortar learning center opened in January, art classes have grown the most and have been the most successful. Additionally, he said he is working to improve the Spanish language tutoring program.

“I love to see students discover new things about art and creating and about themselves, where they figure out they’re good at something,” he said.

Leander Learning Center


1640 Highland Falls Drive, Ste. 802, Leander

512-528-3594

www.leanderlearningcenter.com

Hours: Mon.-Thu. 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Fri. 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m.-3 p.m., closed Sun.