Aida Maldonado has always loved working with children. She has made a career of it. Aida has devoted the last decade of her life to Mission Society’s work at P.S. 28 in the South Bronx. She started as a case manager in the school’s attendance improvement program; now, she is the site coordinator for Mission Society’s Renaissance Learning Academy after-school program at Public School 28, responsible for the welfare and development of 400 elementary school students.

Aida and Edvidge Mancuso, the principal of Public School 28, are proud of what Mission Society’s partnership with the school has accomplished over the years. The program develops the mind, body, and spirit of each child. It strengthens the reading, writing, and math skills that children learn during the regular school day – but it also does much more. In addition to receiving homework assistance and language arts instruction, young people nurture their talents in music, art, dance, and sports. The many Hispanic children in the program engage in several activities that enable them to explore their cultural heritage. According Principal Mancuso, this program is not only a gift to the students enrolled, but also to their working parents, who are pleased that their children are learning in a safe place with caring adults.

Mission Society has replicated Public School 28’s successful after-school model at Public Schools 154 and 175 in Central Harlem. The organization’s after-school initiatives give over 800 children several reasons to smile throughout the academic year.