Ama Anane

The product of Jamaican and Ghanaian parents, Ama Anane (pronounced Ah-nah-nee) grew up in two of the wildest places on earth: Papua New Guinea and Las Vegas. Her scripts, story-based standup, and poetry explore the peculiar identities, experiences, and places that divide and make us whole. Her scripts are often inspired by Ama’s experience running classrooms in prisons and public schools; running a community-based nonprofit; and running after her kids.

Ama is also the founder of Good Influence Consulting, which helps nonprofits and foundations better understand and serve communities existing on the margins, including folks who are queer, BIPOC, young, unhoused, experiencing poverty or incarceration. What connects Ama’s creative and community work is her commitment to understanding and authentically sharing human voices and experiences.

A graduate of Emerson College and Columbia University, Ama serves on the governing board of Communities in Schools and lives in LA with her wife and daughters.

What aspects of CISLA's mission resonate most with your personal values?
As a former public-school teacher, the idea of wrapping our students in holistic community support, love, and opportunities to thrive really resonates with my values.

What is the most compelling reason you believe in the importance of our organization?
CISLA is good for everyone--we are partners for our educators, mentors and case managers for our students, and fierce advocates for parents and caregivers who are trying to ensure their children don't get lost in the nation's second largest school district.

How do you see CISLA making a positive difference in the lives of students and families in the Los Angeles community?
I see it most when I get to talk to our students, hear their dreams of becoming entrepreneurs, going off to college, becoming artists and activists. I also see and know the power of students having more adults in their life whose job is to ensure they can thrive. That's something all students deserve, especially those who have not had the level of investment and opportunity that their more affluent peers have enjoyed. The opportunity gap is real and is at the source of the achievement gap so when we concentrate resources and opportunity for CISLA students, we are addressing historic and current inequities and building a more sustainable and humane world.

What sets CISLA apart from others working in this field, and why is that important?
Our relationship-based approach, how our staff uses these relationships to shape the types of programming we offer students and families. We are adaptive to the needs of our community and blend a programmatic approach with advocacy needed to scale our impact by improving the systems and policies that govern our schools.

Have you attended an event or met a student who has significantly impacted you and motivated you to continue supporting CISLA's mission?
Yes, so many!