In 1 week, rising 9th through 12th graders learn and apply design thinking, entrepreneurship, and innovation to launch a startup with a team of peers.

Over the course of five days, you will:

• Learn the mindset, tools, and techniques to launch a startup.
• Engage with mentors from successful startups and learn how to “fail forward.”
• Apply design thinking to tackle a real challenge you and your peers identify.
• Design a new product, service, or initiative to address your team’s challenge.
• Reflect on how you want to “make a dent in the universe” in the words of Steve Jobs.
• Perform customer discovery on the University of Utah’s campus.
• Build and test prototypes and refine your business model.
• Pitch to an expert panel of judges for feedback.

Want to transform your life and our nation by tackling pressing global and local problems? Learn how entrepreneurs and innovators use design thinking and the lean startup method to develop innovative solutions. Start each day with creativity challenges to stretch your capabilities. Meet students from across the country, collaborate on meaningful projects, and build your candidacy for college!

At Innovation Week @ Utah, student teams experience entrepreneurship first-hand on Utah’s campus, including delivering their final pitches to local venture capitalists! Students work with mentors to develop a solution concept and business model, entertain feedback from potential customers, and pitch their ideas to a panel of judges.

The program is packed with hands-on activities, 21st century skill development opportunities, team challenges, and mentorship to help students start planning for college and 21st century careers!

What better place to learn these innovative skills than at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City!

• Introductions & icebreakers. 
• Fail fast to find success: the growth mindset.
• Innovator’s DNA.
• The Backpack Challenge.
• Design Thinking 101.
• ‘3 Questions’ activity.

• Morning challenge.
• Team challenge kickoff.
• Need finding & empathy interviews.
• Career lunch panel.
• Customer discovery.
• ‘Personas’ challenge.

• Goal setting & success definition warm-up.
• ‘Get out of the building’ exercise.
• Analyze for insights.
• Develop a point of view.
• Ideation I.
• Feedback session I.

• Morning challenge.
• Ideation II.
• Design challenge: Marshmallow activity.
• Prototyping.
• Business Model Refinement w/Mentors.
• Testing & Feedback II.

• The Art of the Pitch.
• Finding purpose and making an impact.
• Mystery questions.
• Final Pitch Competition & Teen Showcase.
• Judging and feedback.