COA Youth & Family Centers

COA's mission is to help Milwaukee children, teens, and families reach their greatest potential through a continuum of educational, recreational, and social work programs offered at our urban community centers, rural camp facility, and partnering Milwaukee Public Schools. Our philosophy is that the best way to achieve positive outcomes for youth is through a family-centered approach that engages parents in their child’s education, growth, and development. This philosophy is woven throughout COA's entire programming continuum, which is comprised of Early Child Development (ages 0-6), Youth Development (ages 7-18), and Community Development. 

COA Youth & Family Centers serves over 10,000 children and families each year, through programs that include: two nationally-accredited early education centers, two family resource centers, parental involvement and early literacy programming, holistic community building initiatives, and youth development programs for pre-teens and teens, including year-round camp experiences at Camp Helen Brachman in central Wisconsin. All COA programming is inclusive and provided to anyone, regardless of ability to pay, and our commitment to providing quality programs is supported by our commitment to financial efficiency and transparency. Over ninety cents of every dollar raised at COA goes directly to support our programs. In addition, COA is in the top 1% of organizations in the nation, receiving Charity Navigator’s highest four-star rating, and scoring among the highest-rated children and family service organizations in the nation.