Martha O'Bryan Center

On a foundation of Christian faith, Martha O'Bryan Center empowers children, youth, and adults in poverty to transform their lives through work, education, employment and fellowship. 

MOBC is a creative activist ministry serving over 9,000 clients in Nashville each year through early learning education, youth development, Work Ready job placement, family resource center community/social services as well as charter schools East End Prep and Explore Community School.

Martha O'Bryan Center is located in the heart of Cayce Place, in East Nashville, less than a mile from downtown Nashville, an area comprised of luxury condos, thriving businesses, and state government offices.  Cayce residents are cut off from the rest of the city by Interstate 24, the Cumberland River, and a poverty of choices. Cayce is comprised of 710 rental units with 2,000 residents, crowded on 63 acres. 90% of the population is African American; 90% of households are headed by a single woman; 59% of residents are under the age of 18. The average household income for families in Cayce Place is $7,494, 70% below the national poverty threshold for a family of 4 ($24,250).  30.3% of adults are unemployed, five times as high as the county average of 5.7%.

Children from our community attend the Stratford and Maplewood clusters of schools within the Metropolitan Nashville Public School system.  Elementary and middle schools are over 80% economically disadvantaged and scored Cs, Ds, or Fs in Reading, Math, Science, and Social Studies, according the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program Results (Stratford/Maplewood clusters, TN Department of Education, 2014).  Zoned high schools are also over 80% economically disadvantaged; 52% of Stratford students and 57% of Maplewood students demonstrated basic/below basic proficiency in English I. Graduation rates are 75% at Stratford and 84.2% at Maplewood (TN Dept. of Education).  

In the summer of 2015, Martha O'Bryan Center moved to our Southside location to serve residents of the Napier Place / Sudekum Apartments community, located just south of Downtown Nashville. Napier / Sudekum is comprised of 796 rental unites with 2,100 resident. 93% of the population is African American; 88% of households are headed by a single woman; 57% of the residents are children under 18. The average head of household is age 22. The average annual household income for families in the Napier / Sudekum community is $7,343.