Tym Smith, Owner, Founder and Lead TrainerIf early education shapes society, then the people leading it must be equipped with the strongest foundation possible.
Tym The Trainer has taken up that mantle with purpose. Built on nearly four decades of lived experience of Tym Smith, owner, founder and lead trainer, the training company provides high-impact professional development, coaching, and certification programs for early childhood educators, directors, and school owners.
Throughout those years, Smith has worked across every layer of early education, starting in the classroom as a pre-K teacher, stepping into leadership as a director and multi-site manager and eventually owning and operating nine programs across six campuses. That breadth of experience is the foundation of how he trains.
“Every course I create is rooted in real practice, tested directly in classrooms and shaped by challenges I’ve personally navigated,” says Smith.
After selling his schools in 2024, he fully shifted into training, coaching and keynote speaking, bringing with him the kind of insight that only comes from living the work. His company has become known for its ‘boots on the ground’ approach, training led by someone who has been in the shoes of teachers, directors and owners. And as the industry continues to evolve, his voice has only grown stronger, especially through national advocacy efforts like the Words Matter campaign, which champions the respect and recognition that early educators deserve.
A Training Ecosystem
Smith’s experience is operational capital. He has turned that capital into a whole ecosystem of training, built for early childhood professionals at every level, including teachers, directors, owners and entire childcare organizations, who seek training, coaching, professional development, operational support and leadership growth.
At the center is an online library of nearly 170 training topics, consistently refreshed as Smith now dedicates his full-time to creating new content. It’s practical, current and built for people who want learning they can use the same day.
To keep the momentum going, the company hosts weekly live webinars that provide educators and leaders with a steady stream of real-time guidance. For teams that prefer face-to-face energy, Smith runs mini conferences that bring focused, actionable training directly to schools.
And then there’s the fan favorite: training cruises. Three times a year, professionals step on board to earn their hours, recharge and learn in an environment that feels as inspiring as it is productive, a tradition that’s been going strong for 16 years.
For those stepping into leadership, Tym The Trainer’s five-day Director Credential Course remains one of the most sought-after programs in the field. Required in many states and consistently sold out, it has helped prepare new directors and owners for nearly two decades.
Navigating a Field That Has Shifted in Real Time
As Smith continued training full-time, he noticed that the education model had changed. Children born during the pandemic are now in classrooms, bringing new social-emotional needs and behaviors that require different approaches from both teachers and leaders. Adults, too, are operating with narrower tolerance levels and higher stress, reshaping how centers manage relationships, regulation and daily interactions.
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Every course I create is rooted in real practice, tested directly in classrooms and shaped by challenges I’ve personally navigated.
This is where Smith’s certification in Conscious Discipline has become a core part of his work, helping understand brain states, strengthen adult composure and respond to behavior with clarity rather than reaction.
The operational landscape has shifted just as sharply. With publicly funded pre-K drawing away older children, many centers have been forced to rebuild their business models around high-need groups with lower margins, like infants and toddlers. Add rising accreditation requirements and higher state standards, and the pressure on directors and owners has grown substantially.
Tym The Trainer sees this moment as a true industry transition which demands stronger leadership, higher quality and a mindset beyond ‘bare minimum’ compliance.
“My role is to motivate, equip and coach teams through industry shifts so they can serve children well and keep their doors open,” says Smith.
Real Coaching, Real Growth
The impact of Tym The Trainer’s approach is most evident in the people he’s coached. One standout example is of a young teacher with just three years of tenure, who was rapidly promoted, first to assistant director, then to director of a 400-child program in a high-need, at-risk neighborhood. It was a tough school, and she was stepping into the deep end with almost no leadership experience.
Over two years of coaching, Smith helped her build the confidence and decision-making muscle the role demanded. The moment she told him, “I’ve got it, I know exactly what to do,” marked the shift. Today, she still leads that school and handles situations many seasoned directors would struggle with.
That pattern shows up across Tym The Trainer’s current coaching clients as well. Whether it’s leaders in Austin or California, Smith notices the same thing: capable professionals who know what to do, but need someone to help them trust their own judgment. Session by session, their confidence rises, their clarity sharpens, and they begin leading from a place of certainty instead of doubt.
These stories underscore what his training is ultimately built to do: equip early-education leaders with the confidence and composure to handle real-world challenges independently.
Understanding Before Instruction
The road to that destination, however, starts with a conversation. Be it coaching, consulting or onsite workshops, an orientation call gives Smith a clear picture of the leader, the facility, their strengths and their challenges. For coaching in particular, he starts by getting to know the person before the practices, because their mindset, work style and current pressures shape everything that follows.
This same approach carries into his onsite trainings and Conscious Discipline sessions. A one- to two-hour call is scheduled to understand the center’s demographics, enrollment, staff experience, team longevity and overall environment. Every shared detail helps build a customized training that fits the client, not the other way around.
Expanding, Evolving and Leveling Up
Smith, too, pours his full attention into strengthening and expanding the training work since selling his schools. He’s actively updating and rewriting the existing courses, developing new material and deepening the research behind every topic, while ensuring the signature training cruises remain unchanged.
Looking ahead, as Tym The Trainer approaches its 20th anniversary in 2026, Smith is preparing to launch his Train-the-Trainer courses, opening a new pathway for professionals who want to step into training themselves. In January 2026, he will also begin his term as president of the Association for Early Learning Leaders, after eight years on the board, another platform for supporting directors, administrators and owners nationwide. His work with Conscious Discipline will continue as well.
On a personal level, Smith is investing in his own growth through a master’s program in life coaching, set to be completed in April 2026. Those skills will fold directly into the increasingly important coaching side of his work, with more onsite guidance, classroom support and hands-on coaching for leaders and teachers.
By championing growth with such clarity and consistency, Smith reinforces that strong leaders elevate entire communities. His ongoing work continues to shape the kind of leadership culture early education deserves—focused, capable and committed to progress.
