While teaching at Skyview High School, I created an annual event to serve as an immersive culminating project for students in my Leadership class. This TED Talk-inspired event was called BOLT (“Building our Legacy Together”) — a play on the school’s mascot the Skyview Storm, and intended to serve as a spark that connected our 2,100 student community.

Beyond it’s final outcome, BOLT also presented an opportunity to teach my Leadership students foundational professional and creative industry skills, including:

• Project Management

• Public Speaking

• Teamwork

• Accountability

• Strategic Planning

• Branding/Design

• Communications Strategy & Management

• Experiential Marketing

• Digital Content Creation

• KPI Measurement

I worked directly with students over a seven month period to both teach and monitor the entire planning and execution process.

BOLT became a treasured annual school tradition. It also fostered a bond between the Leadership class students as they learned to function as a close-knit family, work through challenges, and celebrate each other’s successes.

BOLT created an avenue for all involved to leave a lasting legacy on the school campus. Each year’s event featured three unique in-school assemblies, an evening showcase of additional content for the community, and over 25 individual speakers and performances. It also unified a large school community via a clear demonstration that everyone at Skyview had a unique voice, talent, and experience to share that was deserving of respect.