The Academy of Creative Coaching
US-based ICF-accredited coach training school founded in 2013, known for integrating creativity, cultural competency, and a human-wholeness framework into its certification programs.
- Type
- Coach Training Organization
- Founded
- 2013
- Headquarters
- United States
About
The Academy of Creative Coaching was founded in 2013 by Dr. Pamela A. Larde, Ph.D., a professor, certified coach, joy researcher, and award-winning author based in the Atlanta metropolitan area of Georgia. Dr. Larde established the school with the goal of building an evidence-based curriculum that treated coach training as both a professional discipline and a personal transformation. The Academy is widely noted as among the first Black female-owned coaching schools to hold ICF accreditation.
The school operates from Lawrenceville, Georgia, in the Atlanta metropolitan area, and delivers programs online, in person, and in hybrid formats, drawing students from across the United States and internationally. Its philosophy centers on what it calls "human wholeness": the idea that effective coaching must account for the whole person, including their cultural context, creative capacity, and inner sense of purpose. Dr. Larde also serves as director of education for the Institute of Coaching, an affiliate of McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School, and as a science board member of EZRA, a London-based global provider of digital coaching services. These connections inform the Academy's emphasis on research-grounded practice.
For a coach's clients, completing an Academy program means that coach has trained within an ICF-accredited curriculum and is eligible to apply for ICF individual credentials: ACC (requiring 100 hours of client coaching experience) or PCC (requiring 500 hours).
Training Programs
The Academy offers three primary program formats, all mapped to ICF Level 1 (60 hours) or Level 2 (125 hours) accreditation standards. There are no prerequisites for enrollment.
The Coaching Foundations Course (Level 1, 60 hours)
An introductory cohort-based program designed to build foundational coaching skills. Students choose between a three-day weekend intensive or three months of once-weekly sessions. A JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) specific version of this course is also available. Price: $4,495.
The Advanced Professional Coaching Certification (Level 2, 125 hours)
A nine-month cohort-based program for coaches deepening their practice. It combines three intensive weekend sessions with embedded commitment coaching and supplemental synchronous and asynchronous coursework. Pricing starts at $11,995 (payment plans available).
The Self-Paced Courses (Level 1 or Level 2)
A flexible option combining synchronous and asynchronous learning at the student's own pace. Designed for practitioners who need professional development without a fixed schedule. Level 1: $4,495; Level 1 + Level 2 bundle: $7,995.
All programs include one coaching specialization track, with a second permitted. Specializations cover areas including life coaching, executive coaching, health and wellness, creative arts, educational success, relationship coaching, and spiritual coaching, among others. The curriculum uses Canvas as its learning management platform.
Methodology: Four Pillars
The Academy structures its approach around four interlocking principles that run through every module:
Human Wholeness grounds the school's philosophy: coaches are trained to engage the full person (emotional, cognitive, cultural, and relational) rather than treating presenting goals in isolation.
Cultural Responsivity is woven into the curriculum as a core skill rather than an add-on. The Academy prepares coaches to create environments that integrate self-awareness, personal agency, and deep respect for cultural variance, approaching their work in ways that honor the dignity of each individual.
Creative Solutions reflects the school's founding premise: that creativity is not a personality trait but a coaching resource available to every client. Modules on storytelling, public speaking, and the brain science of creativity are integrated with coaching technique.
Invigorative Leadership™ is the Academy's proprietary framework for coaches who work in organizational and leadership contexts. It emphasizes authenticity, energy, and purpose as drivers of sustainable change in institutions and teams.
The six-module curriculum moves from coaching fundamentals through empowerment frameworks, transformative dialogue, practical techniques, and closes with a coach supervision lab and a student-delivered talk tied to their chosen specialization.
ICF Relationship
The Academy holds ICF accreditation for its programs under the ICF's current Level 1 and Level 2 provider framework. (The school's earlier marketing references "ACTP", the designation ICF retired in 2022 when it restructured its accreditation tiers.) Graduates completing 60 hours of training are eligible to apply for ICF ACC credentials; those completing 125 hours may pursue PCC credentials, subject to the ICF's experience-hour requirements.
The Academy also offers ICF Continuing Coach Education (CCE) units, supporting credentialed coaches meeting renewal requirements. It is additionally recognized by SHRM as a recertification provider, relevant for HR professionals seeking continuing education credit.
The school is a small institution, around 15 staff and instructors, and does not publish enrollment figures. Its formal relationship with ICF is solely as an accredited training provider.
Organisational Reach
Despite its boutique size, the Academy's graduate coaches have worked within a notably broad range of institutional clients. Organisations that have engaged ACC-trained coaches include the Internal Revenue Service, the US Department of Agriculture, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Marine Corps, Bechtel Group, Pratt Institute, the University of Michigan, Target Corporation, the City of New York, DeKalb County, and Union College, among others. That roster reflects both the appeal of ACC's JEDI-integrated curriculum in government and institutional settings and Dr. Larde's connections through her directorship of education at the Institute of Coaching (a McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School affiliate) and her role on the science board of EZRA, the global digital coaching platform. For coaches pursuing work in public sector, government, or large-institution contexts, the Academy's established track record in those markets is a meaningful differentiator from schools that train primarily for private coaching practice.
What This Means for You
If you're considering hiring a coach who trained at the Academy of Creative Coaching, their credential signals training within an ICF-accredited curriculum with a deliberate emphasis on creativity, cultural responsivity, and leadership development. The program's specialization structure means your coach likely focused their training on a particular niche. It's worth asking which one, and how it informs their current practice.
What the credential does not tell you is how many client hours the coach has logged since graduating, or the depth of their ongoing professional development. As with any coach credential, the ICF accreditation of the training program is a floor rather than a ceiling. The Academy's emphasis on human wholeness and cultural responsivity may be especially relevant if those dimensions matter to your coaching goals.
Coaching is a relationship built on the premise that every person carries within them the creativity to solve their own problems, and that the coach's job is to help them access it.
Questions about The Academy of Creative Coaching
Q.01What is the Academy of Creative Coaching?
What is the Academy of Creative Coaching?
The Academy of Creative Coaching is a US-based ICF-accredited coach training school founded in 2013 by Dr. Pamela A. Larde in the Atlanta, Georgia metro area. It offers Level 1 (60-hour) and Level 2 (125-hour) certification programs delivered online, in person, and in hybrid formats.
Q.02Is the Academy of Creative Coaching accredited by the ICF?
Is the Academy of Creative Coaching accredited by the ICF?
Yes. The Academy holds ICF accreditation under the current Level 1 and Level 2 provider framework. Earlier Academy materials reference the older 'ACTP' designation, which ICF retired in 2022 when it restructured its accreditation tiers. The substance of the accreditation is the same.
Q.03What ICF credentials can I pursue after graduating?
What ICF credentials can I pursue after graduating?
Completing the Level 1 (60-hour) program makes you eligible to apply for the ICF ACC credential once you have logged 100 hours of professional coaching experience. Completing the Level 2 (125-hour) program makes you eligible for the PCC credential after 500 hours of experience. The Academy's program fulfills the training-hour and mentor coaching requirements; client hours must be accumulated independently.
Q.04What programs does the Academy offer, and what do they cost?
What programs does the Academy offer, and what do they cost?
The Academy offers three formats: a Coaching Foundations Course (Level 1, 60 hours, cohort-based, $4,495), an Advanced Professional Coaching Certification (Level 2, 125 hours, nine-month cohort, $11,995), and Self-Paced Courses (Level 1 at $4,495 or a Level 1+2 bundle at $7,995). A JEDI-focused version of the Level 1 course is also available. No prerequisites are required for any program.
Q.05What coaching specializations does the Academy offer?
What coaching specializations does the Academy offer?
Students choose up to two specializations woven into their program through textbooks, coursework, independent study, and mentor coaching. Options include life coaching, executive coaching, health and wellness, creative arts coaching, relationship coaching, educational success coaching, spiritual coaching, and executive school leadership coaching, among others.
Q.06What is the Invigorative Leadership™ framework?
What is the Invigorative Leadership™ framework?
Invigorative Leadership™ is the Academy's proprietary coaching framework for practitioners working in organizational and leadership contexts. It emphasizes leading with authenticity, energy, and purpose as the foundations of sustainable change, both in institutions and in individual leaders.
Q.07What is the 'Creative Approach' the Academy uses?
What is the 'Creative Approach' the Academy uses?
The Academy's Creative Approach treats creativity as a coaching resource available to any client rather than a fixed personality trait. Curriculum modules draw on brain science, storytelling, and positive psychology to give coaches practical tools for helping clients access creative problem-solving during sessions.
Q.08Where is the Academy based, and how is training delivered?
Where is the Academy based, and how is training delivered?
The Academy is headquartered in the Atlanta, Georgia metro area (currently Lawrenceville, GA). Programs are delivered online, in person (summer intensives in the Atlanta area), or in hybrid formats. Spanish-language instruction is available for some program sessions.
Q.09Is this the same as the ICF's 'ACC' credential?
Is this the same as the ICF's 'ACC' credential?
No. The Academy of Creative Coaching uses the initialism 'ACC' as a shorthand for its own name, which happens to coincide with the ICF's Associate Certified Coach credential abbreviation. They are entirely different things: the Academy is a training school; the ICF ACC is an individual coaching credential issued by the International Coach Federation.
Q.10How does the Academy differ from larger coaching schools?
How does the Academy differ from larger coaching schools?
The Academy is a small, boutique institution with around 15 staff and instructors. Its distinguishing features are its four-pillar framework (Human Wholeness, Cultural Competence, Creative Solutions, Invigorative Leadership™), its JEDI-specific program track, and its founding mission as one of the first Black female-owned ICF-accredited coaching schools. It does not operate at the scale of larger schools like CTI or iPEC.
Q.11What does a credential from the Academy of Creative Coaching tell me about a coach?
What does a credential from the Academy of Creative Coaching tell me about a coach?
A coach who completed the Academy of Creative Coaching's Level 1 or Level 2 program has trained within an ICF-accredited curriculum that deliberately integrates cultural competence, creativity, and human wholeness alongside standard coaching competencies. At Level 1, they completed 60 training hours and qualify for the ICF ACC credential (requiring 100 additional client hours); at Level 2, 125 hours and PCC eligibility (requiring 500 client hours). The four-pillar framework of Human Wholeness, Cultural Competence, Creative Solutions, and Invigorative Leadership™ means their training is more explicitly oriented toward identity, systemic context, and creative approaches than many standard ICF programs. Their chosen specialization track is worth asking about directly, since the curriculum allows focus in areas ranging from life coaching and executive coaching to health, wellness, creative arts, and relationship coaching.
Q.12What should I ask an Academy of Creative Coaching-trained coach before hiring them?
What should I ask an Academy of Creative Coaching-trained coach before hiring them?
Ask which program level they completed (Level 1 or Level 2) and which specialization track; the answer tells you whether their training depth and focus area matches your needs. Ask what ICF credential level they currently hold and how many client hours they've logged, since the training program fulfills hours toward credentialing but ongoing practice is what builds real competency. Ask how the four pillars, particularly Cultural Competence and Human Wholeness, show up concretely in how they coach; a specific, experience-grounded answer distinguishes practitioners who integrated the curriculum from those who completed it. Ask what they don't work with; knowing a coach's limits is as important as knowing their strengths. If your goals involve leadership, teams, or organizational contexts, ask how they apply the Invigorative Leadership™ framework in practice. Coaching is not therapy; if your situation involves clinical mental health concerns, the right first call is a licensed clinician, not a coach.