Central Students Help Bring Fountain City Christmas Parade Back to Life

When the Fountain City Christmas Parade returned for its second year after a decade-long hiatus, it wasn’t just a holiday celebration — it became a hands-on learning experience for students at Central High.

Through Central’s Academy of Business and Design, students partnered with parade organizers to manage logistics, marketing, and social media for the community-wide event. Their efforts helped the parade grow significantly — and now, that success has come full circle.

At a recent check presentation, Fountain City Business and Professional Association board president Charlie Pratt announced that half of the event’s proceeds would be donated back to the students who made it possible.

“The Business and Design students helped with logistics and built the social media marketing for the Fountain City Christmas Parade,” Pratt said. “They ran the Instagram account, connected with business partners — everything you would expect from a professional marketing team. With the success of the event, we wanted to give back to the school that helped make it happen.”

The parade featured nearly 60 floats and drew crowds that lined the streets of Fountain City. Participation nearly doubled from the previous year — growth FCBPA credits in part to the students’ marketing efforts.

For senior Sydney Defoe, the experience was invaluable. “I think it was one of the most valuable hands-on experiences I’ve had,” she said. “You can learn in a classroom, but actually being in that environment — networking, planning interviews, running meetings — showed me what the job would really be like.”

Students arrived at 6 a.m. on parade day to coordinate floats, finalize scripts for the event host, manage live social media coverage, and operate concessions. Every student had a role, from filming Facebook Live segments to organizing participants.

“They were running everything from meetings, logistics, and planning,” said Academy Coach Cassidy Taylor. “I handed it over to them, trusted them to do it — and they delivered.”

The project gave students a stronger connection to their community. “It really made me appreciate all the behind-the-scenes work and how everything comes together,” senior Evelyn Williams said. “You form connections you wouldn’t normally get.”

The partnership reflects the mission of the 865 Academies: connecting classroom learning to real-world experiences that benefit both students and the community.

“We always say our school is only as strong as our community, and our community is only as strong as our school,” Taylor said. “This is what that partnership looks like.”

For Central students, the Fountain City Christmas Parade wasn’t just an event — it was proof that when education and community come together, everyone benefits!