Academy founder Maxine Mimms recently visited the IFC Garden in Tukwila, Washington. The garden, established in 2021, is currently teaching indoor growing of microgreens and various leafy greens using multiple technologies. Teaching is coordinated by MMA technology director Michael Twiggs.

MMA's indoor gardening program was established in 2013 and has trained indoor gardeners in Seattle, Tacoma and other cities. In addition to indoor growing, the program explores business aspects of gardening and the potential role of urban gardening as an economic engine that can innovatively create opportunities based on addressing the "urban food desert" observed in many cities around the world.

Indoor Farm Collaborative (IFC) is a joint venture of several Seattle-area organizations and firms.

MMA's indoor gardening program — offered in combination with Garden of Eden Urban Farming and IFC Collaborative trains both amateur and professional gardeners to grow and harvest an abundance of organic vegetables, herbs, plants, and flowers every month throughout the year. In addition to supplying abundant quality food, this initiative enables long-term, well-paid jobs and a new sustainable economic institution. (Learn More)

Maxine Mimms Academies (MMA) students at the Senate rostrum with Lt. Governor Owen. They were at the Capitol to testify before the House Education Committee in support of Washington State Mentors. The lieutenant governor was among those who testified.

From left are Tanya Marceau; Whitney Satcher; Lt. Governor Owen; Isa Nichols, MMA executive director; Kayleanna Escalante and Keith James, community resource development administrator with DSHS.

Maxine Mimms Academies' Dr. Maxine Mimms, Founder, and Isa Farrington Nichols, Executive Director attending the Institute of African Centered Thought's (IACT) Annual Ancestral Healing Conference.

The bronze bust of Dr. Mimms was created and presented in recognition and celebration of her career.

AN EVENING OF EXQUISITE CUISINE, LIVE ENTERTAINMENT ---- Please join us for a splendid occasion honoring the legacy of Dr. Maxine Mimms and the Grand-Reopening of the Maxine Mimms Academies Youth Enhancement Initiative.

We will acknowledge the contributions of our sponsors and inform friends and supporters about our new urban farming initiative.

COME AND HEAR ABOUT The Garden of Eden Hydroponic Certification, Employment and Training Program.

Donation: $ 40.00. All donations are tax deductible. Donations will provide scholarships and for general operations. Go to the URL below to make your tax deductible donation.
Time 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Location: Williams Factory, 1423 E 29th, Tacoma, WA 98405.
Sponsor: Friends Of Maxine Mimms Academy
Contact: Isa Nichols.

On Monday, January 16 the Tacoma City Events and Recognitions Committee honored Dr. Maxine B. Mimms with the 2017 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Service Award during the 29th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration. (UPDATED 18 JAN 2017)

"Dr. Mimms embodies the mission of Dr. King through her extraordinary dedication to opening doors of higher education to the diverse community in Tacoma," said Committee Chairwoman Erin Lee. "Our event theme is ‘Beloved Community’ and we gave special consideration to nominees whose work focused on understanding our community and its needs, and delivering solutions."

The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Service Award strives not only to recognize and encourage excellence in community service activities carried out by an individual, organization or group, but also seeks to encourage similar efforts by others who may want to serve in the community. It is presented each year during the City’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration before an average crowd of approximately 2,000 attendees.

New programs and activities are currently being added. Personal profiles, messaging and updates, will further enhance communication among teachers, students and community stakeholders of MMA.

Each enrolled student, teacher, administrator and community mentor may become members of the site. Membership comes with a personal profile, through which each member can update others on current activities.

Member profiles include links to the member's other networks, e.g., Facebook, Twitter and others, along with the member's personal website if available.

Users can look up members' profiles and send messages. They can also post "Updates" to their profile, which will echo as appropriate elsewhere on the site. Enrolled members can also comment on news articles and other content of the site, including this article (you must normally be signed in to comment, but we've opened comments on this article to the public).

Ask your teacher or an administrator about how you can participate.

Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland has graciously agreed to serve as host for this community fundraiser to benefit the Maxine Mimms Academy's new community food growing project, Garden of Eden of Tacoma.

When : July 25, 2012
Time: 11:00am to 1:00pm
Where : Hotel Murano, 1320 Broadway Plaza, Downtown Tacoma, WA

The Maxine Mimms Academies' local community food growing project is called the Garden of Eden. An indoor farming demonstration pilot program designed to grow affordable, organic herbs, fruits and vegetables all year round. This fundraiser is the first in a series of events that will highlight the importance of our communities access to fresh affordable organic fruits and vegetables.

The Garden of Eden is an innovative new approach to urban farming, and offers a holistic approach to food access and community nutrition policy; to better community health, ecological integrity, food education, skills training, local job creation and the development of complete communities.

A short presentation will discuss the advantages of year-round growing cycles as a sustainable business model, new technologies for growing organic foods at much lower cost, new work opportunities for local residents and the impact on our communities needed economic revitalization. A fabulous silent auction will also be held, so come prepared and enjoy the company - all are welcome.

Refreshments - Entertainment - Silent Auction and more !

The impact of "Zero Tolerance" in our public schools has been devastating to African American youth and their families. When a child is suspended or expelled - the whole family pays the price. Routine activities are disrupted, schedules shift, and responsibilities often need to be re-negotiated. The whole family is suspended.

Until recently, concerned parents have been preoccupied with correcting the behavior of their children; getting them the help they need to adapt and excel in the public school environment. The focus of our collective efforts has been to bind the wounds and stop the bleeding. Continued hemorrhaging has been the most visible outcome of our efforts.

Unwittingly, we as a society have declared war on our kids. At Maxine Mimms Academies, we have come to realize that the real need is to "Stop the Bullets" - and the bleeding and hemorrhaging will go away.

The steps we take to accomplish this goal must start with the Tacoma School District and lead to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) in Olympia. Daily operating procedures in our schools stem from the policies adopted and implemented by the Tacoma School District and OSPI.

Disproportionate impact of the current "Zero Tolerance" policies on African American males and children of color in general, is truly cause for alarm. It is time to declare a "State of Emergency"! A whole generation of our children are at risk of being excluded from public education and the benefits a high school diploma can provide. You cannot afford to sit this one out!

There's A War On Kids...

The "School-to-Prison Pipeline" is a reflection of America's current fixation with punishing children rather than educating them. The School-to-Prison Pipeline describes the cumulative effect of various federal, state, and local policies that are leading students away from high school completion towards criminal justice involvement. Many of these policies center around the enforcement of punishment and creating a safe school environment, but the actual implementation of these policies have created greater education disparities under the guise of keeping schools safer.

A major philosophy that has contributed to the negative impact of these policies is "Zero Tolerance". Under this idea, School administrators who use Zero Tolerance - and not all of them do - use suspension or expulsion for certain behaviors after asking few to no questions about the incident.

The School-to-Prison Pipeline in Washington State

GIRL TALK - Our goal is to provide an outlet for the women in the community that is Empowering, Educational, Entertaining & Fun!

GIRL TALK WORKSHOP is partnering with other organizations in Tacoma to provide workshops for girls/young women between the ages of 12-18. The workshops will provide training and information on various topics or issues such as:

CPR Training & Certification - AIDS Awareness & Education - Domestic Violence - Skin, Hair & Nail Care - Nutrition, Health & Wellness - Education - Employment Opportunities and much more!

Girl Talk Workshop

Folks from near and far gathered to pay tribute to Dr. Maxine Mimms on her 80th Birthday. The lives she's touched testify to her ability to change us all - together and yet personally as well.

The photos share the faces of people from all walks of life who share a common bond with our beloved Dr. Mimms. Good food, good fun, and good company, too. What a wonderful time to be alive!

Birthday Photos

The Black History Project is the brainchild of Brave New World's CEO, Shyan Selah. A simple idea of wanting to publicly honor those that have most influenced him in life and music quickly spawned into a need to engage the community as a whole. What started out as a tribute to Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, Sarah Vaughn, John Coltrane, Isaac Hayes, and other musicians has also turned into a personal honoring of those he's known to have affected people in such a way that changes lives forever.

The Scanner article...

On January 19, 2008 the Washington State Chapter of the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice (NABCJ), and Evergreen College Tacoma Alumni Chapter held a Multi-Faith Prayer Breakfast honoring Dr. Maxine B. Mimms, Tacoma educator, mentor, and leader whose career spans over four decades.

Continues...

Three years after its inception in 2004, MMA launches a Strategic Plan to transform public education in this country. By working with students temporarily displaced from public education, their families, community leaders, teachers and school districts, MMA develops a best practices model for public education. The plan includes action research on innovative educational approaches, establishing powerful public and private partnerships, convening collaboratoriums for community stakeholders, providing education, prevention of displacement and intervention for students and families, and building MMA’s capacity to perform and help others replicate the model.

MMA Strategic Plan