A Day in the Life: Expanding Student Voice Through Shared Experience

Submitted By: Dr. Kyra Caldwell Templeton, Program Director of Student Engagement & Co-Advisor of the Student Advisory Council (SAC) 

What happens when students from across Atlanta Public Schools spend a day learning side by side, not in the same classroom, but in each other’s schools?

That’s the idea behind A Day in the Life, a student-led initiative from the Student Advisory Council (SAC) that’s growing into one of the district’s most dynamic engagement programs. This year’s expansion brought together SAC delegates from KIPP Atlanta Collegiate, Therrell High School, BEST Academy, South Atlanta High School, and Carver STEAM for cross-school shadowing visits: a chance to observe classrooms, experience different school cultures, and see leadership up close at schools they’d never set foot in before.

The results? Eye-opening.

“Honestly, this school is amazing,” Therrell High School junior Shaniya Manning said, reflecting on her visit to KIPP Atlanta Collegiate. “I love the school spirit and the aesthetic. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly, and they even gave me a few ideas to bring back to Therrell.”

That exchange of ideas is exactly the point. Students didn’t just take a typical school tour but observed the things that makes each school uniquely different from their own. Amaya Paylor, a senior from KIPP, was surprised by the energy in the school.

“I enjoyed the lack of cell phone usage,” she said. “Everyone was consistently interacting with each other.”

For some students, the day sparked a deeper appreciation for what student leadership can look like. Dennis Leslie, a sophomore from South Atlanta, came away from the B.E.S.T. Academy thinking about the connection between ideas and impact.

“Seeing B.E.S.T. Academy’s student government association (SGA) and their community projects showed me that real leadership turns ideas into impact,” Dennis said. “I’m taking that energy back with me to South Atlanta.”

B.E.S.T. Academy senior Marcel Copeland found common ground across campuses, even when the causes differed.

“We have kind of the same problems,” he noted, “but the causes are different. It’s the kind of nuanced thinking that’s hard to achieve without lived experience.”

That’s what sets A Day in the Life apart. Rather than relying on surveys or meetings to understand student experience across the district, this initiative puts students directly in the moments that matter: bell schedules, classroom instruction, andhallway conversations. The program treats students not just as participants, but as researchers, connectors, and leaders in their own right.

Students represented their schools as ambassadors throughout the day, a deliberate choice that reinforces the seriousness and purpose of their role.As APS continues to invest in authentic student voice, A Day in the Life is a reminder of something simple but powerful: when students are given the opportunity to see, experience, and reflect, they don’t just learn, they lead.