🎓 Reveal the Shield
Reimagining Postsecondary Culture Through Celebration
🔹 Overview
Organization: KIPP Atlanta Schools
Time of Event: May of the Current School Year
Role: Program Implementation Lead
Focus Areas: Postsecondary Access • Student Culture • Event Design • Regional Operations
Tools Used: Google Workspace • Canva • Asana • Surveys • Vendor Management Tools
🔹 The Challenge
At KIPP Atlanta, we were supporting thousands of students on their journeys to college, career, and beyond, but the celebrations didn’t always reflect the weight of that success. Senior Signing Day events often felt limited to a small group that focused on specifically college-bound students, driven by logistics instead of joy.
There was no cohesive, region-wide effort that acknowledged all postsecondary paths, college, career, military, and more, with equity, intention, and cultural relevance. Our students, many of whom were first-generation, deserved a moment that matched the magnitude of their journeys regardless of pathway.
🔹 My Role and Contributions
As the Program Implementation Lead, I led the end-to-end design and execution of Reveal the Shield, KIPP Atlanta’s regional postsecondary signing day event, led by KIPP Forward.
Key Responsibilities:
Program Design: Developed the vision, outcomes, and experience arc to celebrate all postsecondary choices, not just 4-year college acceptances.
Event Leadership: Coordinated with 8+ schools, 20+ leadership stakeholders, and 2,000 students and families for a live arena-scale event.
Vendor & Budget Management: Oversaw logistics including A/V, security, venue contracting, transportation, food, and swag with a budget of $215,000.00
Student Voice & Storytelling: Led a student panel planning team, integrated scholar performances, and built a moment where every graduate walked across the stage.
Cross-Team Communication: Partnered with the marketing, operations, school operations, and family engagement teams to ensure every detail was student-centered and culturally resonant.
🔹 The Impact
✅ 2,000+ attendees across schools, families, staff, and community
✅ 100% school participation from across the regional KIPP network, with grades 3-12 in person and K-2 virtually.
✅ Positive scholar and family feedback: "This made me feel like my future mattered."
✅ Now an annual tradition, formally adopted into KIPP’s regional postsecondary calendar
✅ Increased visibility of non-college postsecondary pathways like apprenticeships and military.
This event is a turning point in how we celebrate success. It shifted the narrative from graduating high school seniors to launching into purpose and viable pathways.
🔹 What I Learned
This experience affirmed that large-scale, joyful events can also be deeply strategic. I learned how to:
Align multiple stakeholders behind a vision while keeping student joy front and center
Build systems for event execution that are scalable and replicable across years
Turn storytelling into a systems-level strategy for student belonging and recognition
If I were to do it again, I would build out a media/PR strategy earlier and create a school-based playbook to drive deeper community-based celebrations alongside the main event.
🔹 Want to Replicate This
If you're building a student experience program or planning a postsecondary celebration, I’d love to share what we built and help you adapt it to your school or network.
📩 workwithalexas@gmail.com