On Sunday, April 28th COA youth debuted their short film “Exposure” at a screening held at Milwaukee’s No Studios. Community members, COA staff, family and friends enjoyed two special screenings of the film, a performance from COA teens, delicious refreshments, and an eye-opening Q&A session with COA’s young filmmakers. Nearly two years ago, COA collaborated [...]

This April, Camp Helen Brachman welcomed 51 mini-Einsteins for two days and two nights of STEM fun during our first ever overnight STEM Camp! Youth from ages eight to 15 from COA’s Auer Ave Community Learning Center (CLC), Westside Academy CLC, MLK Jr. Safe Place, and Keefe Ave Safe Place, as well as youth from [...]

Charity Navigator’s 2019 ratings now list COA Youth & Family Centers as the highest rated charity in the State of Wisconsin.  In addition, COA is listed as: The highest rated “Human Services” charity in Wisconsin, The highest rated provider of “Children’s and Family Services” in Wisconsin, and Nationally, Charity Navigator gives COA the 6th highest rating [...]

Two big factors drove Safe & Sound to launch their groundbreaking Barbershop Mondays program. First, the average haircut costs over $20. Haircut costs can put a serious dent in families’ pockets. Second, the barbershop is an important place where youth and adults can share conversations. As neighborhoods face challenges, it is important for young people [...]

COA is rolling out the red carpet for our 21st Annual Hollywood Gala! While Hollywood’s brightest stars are honored at this year’s 91st Annual Academy Awards, COA will also honor the stars that support Milwaukee’s children and families. Join us at our 21st Annual Hollywood Gala for a night to celebrate our successes, honor our [...]

Teens in COA’s Music and Video Production program lit up the town with amazing performances during the past few months. Since October, youth have performed original songs at five exciting venues: NO Studios, Company Brewing, Saint Kate Hotel, FreeSpace, and Milwaukee Art Museum! Performing gives these kids an opportunity to show the world the [...]

On November 28th the American Camp Association (ACA) granted COA’s Camp Helen Brachman an award for being its longest-serving camp in the State of Wisconsin! This prestigious award recognizes camps that have over 100 years of service. COA’s Camp Director, Eve Smallwood, and Camp Registrar, Leslie Woodruff, traveled to the annual ACA Wisconsin Fall Conference [...]

On Thursday, November 8th, COA celebrated National STEM Day with our 2nd Annual STEM Expo held at our Goldin Center (2320 W. Burleigh Street). National STEM Day encourages youth around the country to explore Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. 100 youth participated in fun STEM activities at COA’s two-hour STEM Expo. Children from COA’s Burke [...]

In March 2018, COA partnered with Hunger Task Force to open a brand new community food pantry in our Goldin Center! Located within our Ethel Nutis Gill Family Resource Center, COA’s new food pantry serves approximately 500 people per month. The pantry has increased hundreds of families’ access to healthy foods in the Amani neighborhood, [...]

Thanks to a generous grant from Kohl’s, Susan G. Komen Wisconsin can continue their breast health program Conversations with Komen Presented by Kohl’s. Komen Wisconsin identified eight target zip codes that have disparities in breast cancer mortality. With this new focus they’ve selected COA’s Gill Family Resource Center inside our Goldin Center as the site [...]