In their own words.

“I recently was appointed as the Department Chair for Physical Education. One of my goals was to find someone that could come to our school and provide me and my staff with a professional development opportunity. I was reading some articles online and found something written by Amanda Stanec about the importance of quality PE everyday. I was immediately interested in talking with her. I called her and was very impressed with her passion, knowledge and enthusiasm for PE and healthy living. I knew I did not need to look any further.  I talked with Amanda several times before she came to our campus in August (2013). She performed a comprehensive review of our curriculum and program and provided me with a detailed report of suggestions and recommendations. She also performed a 6-session workshop for us including assessment for learning and TGFU (teaching games for understanding). Having taught PE for 15-years, I was so impressed with her honesty and willingness to listen as well as her knowledge and research based suggestions. I am so glad Amanda was able to come to us and look forward to bringing her back again someday soon!”

Mike Lamb
Rutgers Preparatory School,
Somerset, NJ

“I remember one of the great lessons that I learned about coaching from Amanda when she was my instructor at the University of Virginia. It was about being understanding and not jumping to conclusions if an athlete shows up late to practice. Amanda encouraged me to first determine if a test was a failed, if a ride didn't show up, or so forth. I learned from Amanda that a student athlete being late could be an opportunity to show compassion and to make myself available to a youth in need rather than an opportunity to be frustrated without all the details. I would recommend any business that Amanda is associated with.”

Adam Cristman
Former Professional Soccer Player,
LA Galaxy, MLS

“I have had the pleasure of working with Amanda for nearly two years on higher education curriculum development. Specifically, Amanda has designed three courses for students in a university Education program. Amanda was hired specifically for her incredible knowledge and understanding in teacher preparation in physical education. Her academic experience and research background coupled with her professional practice as a teacher made her the ideal person to develop these courses. Amanda’s approach has been incredibly collaborative, resulting in the development of three outstanding courses for future PE teachers. Not only did she develop an evidence-based curriculum that is current and up-to-date, but Amanda also provided material on how best to deliver the course with an experiential learning approach.  In addition, once course development was complete, Amanda has always been actively involved to provide ongoing support to the instructor(s) to ensure that the course is delivered as planned and the instructors have as much information as is needed. We have been extremely fortunate to have Amanda develop these courses for our university.  I have no doubt that the future teachers who will receive these courses will be exceptionally prepared and will make great contributions to creating students who lead active and healthy lives.”

Dr. Tina Gabriel
Associate Professor Faculty of Kinesiology,
University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada

“From my experiences with Amanda Stanec she not only exemplifies what positive role models are, but she demonstrates how positive energy and believing in others can create positive results. As someone who fully believes in personal health and wellness, Dr. Stanec was not only a major influence on my thought process of making smart life choices, she also taught me how to develop options in order to put myself in a position to make those choices. She is a strong advocate of living an active and healthy lifestyle while making the right choices to lead your life and influencing others to live positive lifestyles as well. There are many people who have come in and out of my life, but none have had such an everlasting impression. The personal conversations, professionalism and educational activities we shared not only shaped me as a professional educator, but as an individual. I know that if I was ever facing a crossroads in life choices she would be one I contact first. I trust her judgment and honesty, I respect her opinion and most importantly I believe in what she is saying.”

Bobby Reed
Professional Hockey Player,
Fayetteville FireAntz Director of Youth Ice Hockey Development, Fayetteville Jr. FireAntz

“Dr. Amanda Stanec at Move Live Learn was a complete game changer for us in pleading our case to get wrestling back in the district. I would highly recommend her and her organization. They are as good as it gets. Amanda’s an amazing communicator and really knew how to present research in a way that people can relate to and understand.”

Matt Moos
Beat the Streets Wrestling,
Toledo, Ohio

“I was thrilled and exhausted at the end of the first Physical Literacy Summit in Hamilton last fall, but decided to squeeze in the last session offered by Amanda Stanec. Wow! I was re-vitalized and re-energized by her incredible passion for Physical Literacy! The session kept us active physically and mentally. Amanda has a gift for making everyone in her sessions feel valued. She challenged us to think about how we teach and how we could give more to our students. She demonstrated how wonderful it feels to be fully engaged in learning. Absolutely Awesome!”

Linda Whitmarsh
OCT Health and Physical Education Department,
Sinclair Secondary School, Whitby, Ontario

“I cannot say enough positive things about Amanda Stanec. I have had the opportunity to work with her on a number of occasions and I hope to have many more! Most recently, I reviewed an outstanding secondary physical education curriculum she developed for a Canadian province. Not only was the curriculum extremely thorough and nicely aligned with the standards and learning outcomes, it was innovative and experiential. Practical ideas for authentic assessment were embedded throughout the curriculum in a meaningful way. Amanda provided outstanding suggestions for teaching and learning while allowing for flexibility to adapt to the various needs of different school districts. She also addressed every learning domain, for a true interdisciplinary curriculum. In addition to this recent curriculum project, I have worked with Amanda in the areas of course development, research, and health and fitness initiatives. On all fronts, Amanda's work ethic, attention to detail, and passion are unmatched by anyone with whom I have ever worked.”

Dr. Amanda Campbell
Assistant Professor, Department of Health and Human Services,
Bridgewater College, Virginia

“My staff and I were fortunate enough to be able to have Dr. Amanda Stanec come work with us during our training week as we prepared for a summer filled with fun at Cavalier Day Camp at the University of Virginia. Many of my staff were returning counselors and I was looking for a way to spice up their training, since we had the same guest speakers for a couple of years. Amanda was just the ticket! She worked with me to understand the staff and tailored her presentation to draw them in and keep them engaged, laughing and sharing ideas. The session was everything that I hoped for and more, the staff talked about ideas that Amanda shared for the entire summer, and begged me to bring her back next summer for another training session. Her second session was even better! It wasn't a repeat of information, it was the latest and greatest ideas and research and she was as dynamic of a speaker as ever. During the course of that summer, we had a camper that my staff was struggling to incorporate into the group. I called Amanda and she talked us through some techniques to reach out to this child, and it worked. The child formed some incredible bonds with the staff and other kids and we were able to make a real impact. Amanda’s training was not only energetic, funny and engaging she was there for follow up help and really cared to help make my staff and the camp fantastic!”

Amanda Crombie
Director, Aquatic and Fitness Center,
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

“We asked Dr. Stanec come in for training of our group exercise team. While all of our instructors are well qualified in the teaching of their ‘discipline,’ when they go through their certification process the focus is always on individual exercises and the technical components of the class. However, with 30-years of experience in the fitness and wellness industry, I’m very aware of the need to train each team member on customer service and how to deal with different members and clients and their varying needs. Dr. Stanec was able to take our group exercise team from ‘good’ to ‘great.’ Our group exercise class attendance has increased by 20% in six weeks and the positive feedback from members has never been higher. If you are a group fitness instructor, or a manager of a group exercise team, I highly recommend Dr. Stanec’s services. You will be amazed with the result.”

Grant Gamble
Leading Fitness and Wellness Expert

“I first met Amanda in my young twenties. Amanda is a rare soul. She is passionate, energetic, athletic, emotive, compassionate and extraordinarily intelligent. She is driven, and exemplifies the ideal of living life every single day to the greatest extent of your ability. Amanda inspired me to become an educator with her enthusiasm and passion toward teaching. I would not have begun the journey on my own professional path if not for Amanda. Her honesty, care, concern, and attention to detail make all the difference. She listens thoughtfully when you speak, and if you can listen thoughtfully to what she has to say, she may just change your life.”

Brett Mayer
Teacher,
The Hotchkiss School, Lakeville, Connecticut