ACHIEVE ACADEMY

BAY AREA CHAPTER | Oakland, CA

Big Picture

Achieve Academy is a charter school located in the Fruitvale district of Oakland, California. The school is part of Education for Change, whose mission is to provide a superior public education to Oakland’s most under-served children by creating a system of public schools that relentlessly focuses on their students’ academic achievement.

They believe that high-quality instruction, and its continuous refinement, will lead to success. They know that when their students succeed, they will be prepared to make thoughtful and informed choices that will set them on a path for a successful life. Achieve Academy is one of the highest-performing elementary campuses in Oakland.

Project Color Corps worked hard to transform their uninspired campus environment through a collaborative process that empowered these young students to think in color. Together, we were able to refresh their school with paint and a lot of community love.

A Conversation About Color

Project Color Corps’ founder, Laura Guido-Clark led an interactive color seminar where the kids learned about the transformational power of color and, with help from the school community—the students, the teachers, the parents, and the staff. Designer Jean Orlebeke developed a striped pattern inspired by a student’s comment, “I wish the colors could stand side-by-side like friends.”

The students shared their ideas and became empowered in the process. Project Color Corps taught them about the fundamentals of color, its connection to emotion, and its ability to inspire.

The Transformation

From these color conversations, two color palettes were applied to the design. The students were ecstatic to learn that they would have the final vote and the CREATIVE COOL design won.

During the color seminars, the students asked if they could have a garden and trees. Crooked Nest dedicated their time and energy to design a garden with Project Color Corps. Their crew of volunteers planted trees and a garden for the school. Additional countless volunteers and the school community rolled up their sleeves to complete the final transformation.