Barack and Michelle Obama Academy’s New Student-designed Playspace

The students at the Barack and Michelle Obama Academy (BAMO) saw their vision for a new playspace built in a day thanks to some help from school partners KABOOM!, The CarMax Foundation, Children & Nature Network, and an army of volunteers.

BAMO students met weekly with The CarMax Foundation to design what they wanted for their new playspace. On Thursday, October 10, their designs for a new playground, basketball court, GaGa pit, and more were installed in a day.

“I’m extremely delighted that everything has come together because it has been many weeks behind the scenes getting this all together,” BAMO Principal Dr. Robin Christian said. “This could not have been possible without partnerships. The philanthropic work that makes this happen is just amazing.”

The school celebrated the completion of the new playspace with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, which featured the students who helped design the project.

This new playspace is part of the Atlanta Community School Park Initiative (CPI), which builds on KABOOM!’s partnership with Atlanta Public Schools (APS), building more than 16 playgrounds across APS over the past 25 years. KABOOM! joined the cohort to support scaling the Community Schoolyards pilot program through its 25 in 5 Initiative to End Playspace Inequity. Through 25 in 5, KABOOM! is partnering across sectors to accelerate its mission, ending playspace inequity at the scale it exists in 25 places in the next five years.

Together with KABOOM!, this playground marks The CarMax Foundation’s 4th playground built in Metro Atlanta. The Foundation has provided the majority of funding for the project through its $3.9 million partnership with KABOOM, aimed at supporting its mission. More than 150 CarMax volunteers will help make the new playspace a reality, further demonstrating the company’s commitment to making a positive impact where we live and work to help our communities thrive.

“This was a dream come true,” Dr. Christian said. “Here in APS and working with the city, I’m proud to see that people said yes to make sure that our children have a safe space.”