1+1=2 2+2=4 It’s amazing how a math equation may seem simple now, yet at the age of three it was impossible. What helps bridge that gap? Often times it is a teacher -- one of the biggest influencers in a child’s life. Jorian Lavender first became interested in teaching early childhood after she enrolled her [...]

COA is having an incredible 110th anniversary year, and we are really excited about the future in the Amani, Riverwest, and Harambee neighborhoods we serve. This March we won two MANDIs (Milwaukee Awards for Neighborhood Development Innovation); COA’s Executive Director Tom Schneider best expresses just how proud and excited we are: “It was humbling and [...]

COA is proud to be nominated by the Milwaukee Association for Neighborhood Development Innovation’s (MANDI) prestigious BMO Harris Cornerstone Award for its efforts in the transformation of the Amani neighborhood. To add to the excitement, the Milwaukee County Parks Department and partners have been nominated for the Brewers Community Foundation Public Space Award for opening [...]

Azalea Martinez is a junior at Riverside University High School and is a member of the school's Midwest Regional champion robotic team. But her "educational career" began when she was 3 years old as one of the first participants in COA's HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) program. As a young parent, Leticia [...]

Seventy preschoolers graduated from Milwaukee's HIPPY program on Saturday, May 16th at Milwaukee Public Library - Centennial Hall. HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) is an internationally known early literacy and parental engagement program for children provided by COA in partnership with The Parenting Network. The event included a graduation ceremony for families completing [...]

A recent article from WUWM Milwaukee Public Radio sheds light on violence and hope in the Amani neighborhood. An excerpt from the article about COA is below: "The threat of violence is always present, according to Quintrell Boyles. “It’s affecting everybody tremendously. I mean, for some of us, it’s right on our front doorsteps. For others, [...]

Ashley Harrell:  Burke Early Education Center Director Ashley Harrell joins COA's early education team with almost 15 years of early childhood education and 10 years of community relations experience. She discovered her passion for early childhood education at the age of 15, and started towards a degree in Early Childhood Education at Milwaukee Area Technical [...]

COA was recently highlighted in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article on the changing landscape of the Amani neighborhood. From the article: "Amani — bordered by N. 27th St., W. Keefe Ave., N. 20th St. and W. Center St. — historically has been one of Milwaukee's most challenged neighborhoods with high rates of poverty and crime. [...]

Kiran Vee and Day'zhane Andersen put together "Good Kid Brew City," which tells the story of a brother and sister confronting the tensions of life, art, and violence.

The “Ghost of Christmas Present” is alive and well at COA this holiday season! The Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s production of A Christmas Carol adopted COA’s HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) program to benefit from its post-production tradition. Following each performance of A Christmas Carol, actors invited audience members to make a donation [...]