Business Origin Stories Series: Shaunte Allen -

The DEC Network: “We got a chance to catch up with Shaunte Allen, owner of Allen Vocademy, LLC™, an EdTech company founded in 2021. Here are a few questions we asked Shaunte.”

The DEC Network: What inspired you to start a business?

Shaunte: “I founded Allen Vocademy with the purpose of making literacy accessible and fun for working adults who desire economic success.

I realized that my face-to-face college students needed additional practice with reading comprehension. However, they couldn’t stay after class for tutoring because they worked all evening and cared for their families at night. Tutoring over email or the telephone just wasn’t working. So, I created an online literacy program to integrate interactive, gamified elements that provide replayability and continuous support.”

The DEC Network: We love that you recognized a need in your community and are addressing it! Tell us a little more about your business.

Shaunte: Our 3-prong approach to meeting the unique needs of adult learners results in knowledge retention and skills mastery:

Our transformational learning approach shifts how adults think and feel about achieving social and economic success in their communities.
Our scenario-based framework promotes the transfer of academic skills to real-life situations where adults live, work, and play.
Our metacognitive framework addresses slow cognitive processing by using visual imagery to illustrate complex concepts.

Our social impact goal is promoting information and digital literacies for family educational awareness, entrepreneurship, and employment resources. Research shows that low educational equity and digital literacy attainment are directly correlated to the national poverty rate. This includes poor health and nutrition choices, dilapidated housing, and lower job wages.

Social Impact Objectives:

Help close the literacy achievement gap, before 2030, by remediating 500 learners annually to strengthen and expand the number of educated and skilled citizens contributing to the workforce.
Increase library usage by 30% to promote information and digital literacies for family educational awareness, entrepreneurship, and employment resources.
Donate two literacy-improvement scholarships annually.

The DEC Network: A couple more questions! What does your day-to-day work life look like and what’s next for you and your business?

Shaunte: “In my day-to-day, as CEO, my primary responsibility is high-quality program development that closes gaps and unmet needs of the adult education community. I design effective curricula using interactive, gamified elements that make learning fun and keep adults engaged after a long workday. I also identify funding sources, network to build business relationships, and advertise our services to potential learners and partners.

What’s next for me is acquiring technical systems that support my courses and business. I am also expanding my network by utilizing The DEC Network’s Truist Scale Up Initiative to acquire the critical skills and resources necessary to run a successful business.”

The DEC Network: It was amazing to chat with Shaunte and learn more about her story and business.