Empathize
Participants will launch the institute through a Charlottesville Connection Crawl, gather firsthand community evidence from student-led neighborhood stops and local voices, and produce an initial asset map and fieldwork record that will ground later problem framing and project design.
Day 1
Define
Participants will synthesize evidence from the Charlottesville Connection Crawl, stakeholder voices, and asset-mapping patterns to define a clear, user-centered problem statement that can guide later project design decisions.
Day 2
Ideate
Participants will turn asset-mapping evidence and problem statements into multiple project possibilities, use standards and community-fit criteria to narrow their options, and leave the phase with two promising, evidence-backed directions for project plan drafting.
Days 3 - 4
Draft
Participants will translate community evidence, standards analysis, and ideation work into the first working versions of two community-connected project plans and at least one interactive artifact, using collegial critique and revision records to make design decisions visible.
Days 5 - 6
Test
Participants will test draft project plans and interactive artifacts with peers and community-connected reviewers, capture rubric-based evidence, and document revisions they will carry into the next critique cycle.
Days 7 - 8
Critique
Participants will engage in a structured critique cycle on their two Charlottesville project plans and interactive artifacts, using peer and partner feedback to identify strengths, surface unresolved assumptions, and document specific revisions for the final phase.
Day 9
Notice & Reflect
Participants will synthesize feedback from the Charlottesville Learning Showcase, document how community evidence and critique shaped their two project plans, and record concrete next steps for implementation in next year’s instruction.
Day 10