Community Outreach Academy of the Arts:

Highlighting Community School Practices and Refugee Work

Located in the greater Sacramento area, COA, a TK–8 public charter school, is one of nine unique schools managed by Gateway Community Charters (GCC). GCC was established over 20 years ago in response to the assets and needs of the local Slavic community. Community Outreach Academy of the Arts’s mission is rooted in service, aiming to create a school where families can thrive in a new country while preserving their culture, language, and traditions. What began as a response to the immediate needs of the Slavic community has grown into something much larger — a community school that welcomes and supports families from all backgrounds, many of whom arrive carrying stories of resilience, migration, and new beginnings. Our school is a home where stories of resilience and migration take root. Families arrive holding both loss and light, and together we discover that education is the key to safety, stability, and opportunity. 

Today, Community Outreach Academy of the Arts serves over 1,400 students from diverse backgrounds. Our school community is rich in culture and language: 75% of our students are English Language Learners, and 84% qualify for free or reduced-price meals, reflecting the resilience and strength of families navigating new challenges. Every decision we make — from curriculum design to staffing, professional development, and family engagement — is rooted in our belief that every child deserves a safe, nurturing, and academically rigorous environment where they can thrive. To support this goal, we provide the highest quality public education through collaboration among faculty, staff, and families, ensuring every student experiences growth academically, socially, and personally. Education at Community Outreach Academy of the Arts is guided by three key principles: (1) Flourishing through the arts, (2) keeping students at the center, and (3) pedagogy rooted in resilience.

COA is a community where every student’s potential is discovered, nurtured, and celebrated.”

Color, sound, movement, and story fill the halls as students explore new ways to learn, create, and express themselves. Until this school year, Community Outreach Academy of the Arts, was known simply as Community Outreach Academy Elementary. This name change aims to highlight that our students engage in far more than academic instruction—they are learning through music, dance, storytelling, painting, performance, and play. By weaving the arts into both the school day and enrichment programs, COA provides opportunities for every child to learn joyfully, grow academically, and engage meaningfully with their cultural and personal identity, expressing the journeys, hopes, and resilience that each student brings to our community.  Students uncover their unique talents, build confidence, and shine in ways that extend beyond the classroom.

During the school day, students participate in music and art lessons as part of COA’s transition to Community Outreach Academy of the Arts, ensuring that all students have access to high-quality arts instruction. Physical Education classes integrate dance standards, helping students develop coordination, creativity, and self-expression. In World Language, students experience cross-curricular lessons that integrate Russian, Ukrainian, and Spanish, with theater standards to foster performance, storytelling, and cultural expression. These cross-curricular experiences allow students to engage deeply with the arts while building confidence, collaboration, and a deeper appreciation for their own and others’ cultural heritage — directly reflecting COA’s mission to nurture both academic talent and cultural understanding.

These cross-curricular experiences allow students to engage deeply with the arts while building confidence, collaboration, and a deeper appreciation for their own and others’ cultural heritage — directly reflecting COA’s mission to nurture both academic talent and cultural understanding.”

After school, students can further explore their interests through a wide variety of programs, including homework club, art, music, dance, STEM, gymnastics, photography, and math tutoring, among others, all designed to nurture curiosity, collaboration, and confidence. These opportunities strengthen academic skills, foster social-emotional growth, and help students develop the personal and civic competencies described in our mission and vision. By providing equitable access to a rich array of experiences, COA encourages students to shine, explore, and realize their full potential while thriving in a safe, nurturing environment.

At Community Outreach Academy, students are at the center, relationships come first, and services are tailored to meet the needs of our community and each individual student. This is accomplished through multiple programs and every member of our school faculty and staff play a role in ensuring our students’ strengths are cultivated and their challenges are scaffolded. We keep students at the center by building social-emotional skills, and providing scaffolded supports in the classroom. 

All staff are trained in Capturing Kids’ Hearts (CKH), a research-informed program designed to help educators build strong, trusting relationships with students, create positive classroom cultures, and respond effectively to behavioral or emotional challenges. CKH equips teachers with strategies to reinforce positive behavior, de-escalate conflicts, and foster a safe, supportive learning environment — benefiting every student, including those navigating the challenges of migration and adaptation, helping them turn obstacles into opportunities for growth and resilience. COA has been recognized as a CKH Showcase School for eight years, highlighting our consistent excellence in implementing these practices schoolwide.

 …benefiting every student, including those navigating the challenges of migration and adaptation, helping them turn obstacles into opportunities for growth and resilience.

Every student is supported academically, socially, and behaviorally through our Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) framework. Last year (2024–2025), COA served 1,418 students, each receiving the right support at the right time, keeping students at the center of learning and growth.

All students benefit from Tier 1 support: high-quality, differentiated instruction aligned to state standards, combined with embedded strategies that support English learners and social-emotional growth. Teachers use GLAD (Guided Language Acquisition Design) strategies, which provide scaffolds, visual supports, and structured interactions that help all English learners access grade-level content while building English proficiency. For immigrant and refugee students, GLAD is particularly valuable, helping them navigate new academic and language environments, participate confidently in classroom activities, and engage fully with peers. Combined with Capturing Kids’ Hearts for social-emotional learning, these Tier 1 strategies create classrooms where every student can engage, learn, and feel safe.

Some students need extra guidance. Tier 2 supports include WIN (“What I Need”),  a 45-minute block offered by each grade level, Monday through Thursday, where students receive targeted, small-group instruction designed to address specific academic skill gaps. Teachers closely monitor progress, adjust lessons in real time, and share updates with families so students and caregivers are active partners in learning.

For students requiring more intensive support, Tier 3 interventions provide individualized instruction tailored to unique needs. Students have access to our Reading and Math Specialists for structured one-on-one or small-group support, while programs like SIPPS and Sonday offer additional reading interventions. This coordinated, multi-tiered approach has proven highly effective: last year, 63% of students began the year performing one or more grade levels below in phonics; by year’s end, only 33% remained below grade level — reflecting the impact of Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports working together.

Through Tier 2 WIN Time, Tier 3 specialist support, collaboration, and personalized interventions, COA ensures that every student receives the help they need to grow academically, socially, and emotionally — living our commitment that whatever it takes, our kids are worth it.”

Students thrive when families, staff, and the broader community are actively involved, and COA creates many ways for everyone to participate. Families help guide school decisions through School Site Council, District Language Advisory Committee, and parent surveys, ensuring that each voice contributes to shaping the learning environment. Our Parent Liaison/Community Engagement Specialist serves as a bridge between school and home, providing resources, answering questions, and helping families navigate everything from enrollment to community support. For example, our parent and community liaisons partner with local churches like Spring of Life and participate in their refugee support program, Parasolka. During Saturday gatherings, our liaisons connect with families to answer questions, share information about COA, and ensure new families know they have a trusted place to turn for support.

COA ensures that all newcomers have equal access to learning by providing free daily meals, school supplies, and classroom technology. By offering support, guidance and resources, COA provides a stable home-away-from-home for families beginning a new chapter. Students attending our no-cost after school program are celebrated and encouraged through traditions that recognize effort, achievement, and positive behavior — from Slice with Vice for monthly positive attitude, to Pizza with the Principal for trimester academic success, Perfect Attendance Awards, and academic assemblies. Families are invited to engage in joyful learning experiences alongside their children at Back to School Night, Family Movie Night, Family Reading Night, the Festival of the Arts, and parent-teacher conferences. And although these events are commonplace, we make sure to include cultural aspects that enrich the experience of students and families alike.

Connections are at the heart of everything we do at Community Outreach Academy of Arts.”

COA also takes time to honor the contributions of parents and staff through Coffee with the Principal, Parent Appreciation Breakfast, and Staff Appreciation Weeks. These practices reflect COA’s commitment to valuing every member of our school family with special consideration for cultural and ethnic traditions, creating a community where students, families, and staff feel supported, celebrated, and connected.

Our school is a home for children and families who carry stories of resilience, migration, and new beginnings. Many families have arrived seeking safety, stability, and opportunity, bringing both the weight of loss and the light of hope. These stories remind us that education is more than academics — it is healing, belonging, and empowerment. 

By serving, we don’t just shape minds — we empower students to embrace their identities, build resilience, and imagine bold futures. We create a community where every child can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally, and where families feel valued, supported, and part of the journey. At Community Outreach Academy of Arts, service means walking alongside our students and families every step of the way, nurturing not just scholars, but confident, capable, and compassionate members of our diverse world.