Launch
Launch
Students will launch the internship challenge by analyzing an authentic small-business case, building team norms, practicing core entrepreneurship concepts, preparing for stakeholder communication, and producing an initial project scope draft grounded in evidence, risks, and opportunities.
Days 1 - 5
Empathy & Research
Empathy & Research
Students will gather and analyze mentor, client, and case-study evidence to understand user needs, customer pain points, market opportunities, ownership tradeoffs, risks, and ethical responsibilities. They will turn raw evidence into structured empathy artifacts, revise their inquiry focus, and document a research-based project direction through interview notes, audio reflections, and a gated evidence checkpoint.
Days 6 - 13
Define Design Brief
Define Design Brief
Students will synthesize mentor interview evidence, case-study findings, and market signals into a clear design brief with a focused How Might We statement, defined constraints, documented assumptions, and a risk-and-responsibility checklist that addresses ownership, ethics, safety, and AI use before moving into concept generation.
Days 14 - 21
Generate Concept Options
Generate Concept Options
Students will generate several distinct solution concepts for a small-business challenge, test each idea against user evidence, market signals, risk factors, and ethical responsibilities, then select one concept direction to carry into prototyping with documented justification and revision history.
Days 22 - 29
Prototype & Test Cycle
Prototype & Test Cycle
Students will build and test rapid prototype versions of their small-business solution, gather direct user and peer feedback, document two revision cycles, and produce a stronger mid-fidelity prototype with clear evidence of how customer pain points, risks, differentiation, ethics, and project scope shaped design decisions.
Days 30 - 37
Validate & Present
Validate & Present
Students will validate their solution with a representative user, document final evidence-based decisions, and prepare a stakeholder-facing pitch deck, script, and portfolio assets that explain their design journey, risks, ethics, and recommended next steps.
Days 38 - 45
Showcase
Showcase
Students will finalize exhibition materials, present their small-business solution and digital portfolio to an authentic audience, capture stakeholder feedback, and complete a closing reflection on evidence, risk, ethics, professionalism, and next steps.
Days 46 - 50
Launch
Days 1–5
Day 1
🚀 Challenge Kickoff Case Lab
Launch
45m
Day 2
🏢 Ownership Models Decision Sort
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 3
⚠️ Risk and Ethical AI Clinic
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 4
📧 Mentor Email and Scope Draft
Deliverable
45m
Day 5
📝 Scope Gallery Walk Revision
Assessment
45m
Empathy & Research
Days 6–13
Day 6
🧭 Mentor Interview Question Clinic
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 7
📊 Case File Patterns Board
Research
45m
Day 8
🏢 Ownership Tradeoff Scenarios
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 9
🎤 Client Intake Interview
Community Experience
45m
Day 10
⚖️ Risk and Ethical AI Check
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 11
🗺️ Empathy Map and Insight Clusters
Deliverable
45m
Day 12
🧾 Evidence Brief Peer Tuning
Project Work
45m
Day 13
🚦 Research Gate Gallery Walk
Assessment
45m
Define Design Brief
Days 14–21
Day 14
🧩 Evidence Cluster Wall
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 15
🏢 Ownership Choice Scenarios
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 16
⚠️ Risk and AI Guardrails
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 17
📝 Design Brief Draft
Deliverable
45m
Day 18
💬 Design Brief Tuning
Project Work
45m
Day 19
🎙️ Mentor Check-In Audio Log
Community Experience
45m
Day 20
✅ Approved Brief and Checklist
Assessment
45m
Day 21
🖼️ Milestone Gallery Walk
Project Work
45m
Generate Concept Options
Days 22–29
Day 22
🧠 Concept Sprint from Empathy Maps
Launch
45m
Day 23
📊 Ownership and Feasibility Sort
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 24
⚠️ Risk and Ethical AI Checkpoint
Knowledge/Skill Building
45m
Day 25
✏️ Three Concept Boards
Deliverable
45m
Day 26
🗣️ Tuning Protocol on Concept Boards
Project Work
45m
Day 27
🎙️ Mentor Check-In and Audio Debrief
Community Experience
45m
Day 28
🧮 Weighted Decision Matrix Revision
Project Work
45m
Day 29
🖼️ Concept Gallery Walk Notes
Assessment
45m
Prototype & Test Cycle
Days 30–37
Day 30
🚦 Prototype Test Criteria
Knowledge/Skill Building
40m
Day 31
🧰 Low-Fidelity Prototype Sprint
Project Work
45m
Day 32
🗣️ User Testing Round One
Community Experience
45m
Day 33
📊 Feedback Log and Revision Plan
Knowledge/Skill Building
40m
Day 34
🔁 Mid-Fidelity Build Revision
Deliverable
45m
Day 35
🧪 Tuning Protocol Feedback
Research
45m
Day 36
👥 User Testing Round Two
Community Experience
45m
Day 37
📌 Iteration Gate Gallery Walk
Assessment
45m
Validate & Present
Days 38–45
Day 38
🎯 Final Validation Plan
Knowledge/Skill Building
40m
Day 39
🗣️ User Check-In Notes
Community Experience
45m
Day 40
⚖️ Risk and Ethics Decision Record
Knowledge/Skill Building
40m
Day 41
🖥️ Pitch Deck Build Sprint
Project Work
45m
Day 42
🤝 Peer Tuning on Pitch Decks
Deliverable
45m
Day 43
🎤 Script and Q&A Rehearsal
Knowledge/Skill Building
35m
Day 44
📝 Milestone Gallery Walk Notes
Deliverable
30m
Day 45
✅ Portfolio Defense Readiness Check
Assessment
45m
Showcase
Days 46–50
Day 46
🧭 Portfolio Pitch Night Run-Through
Knowledge/Skill Building
40m
Day 47
🗣️ Warm-Cool Feedback Tuning
Deliverable
45m
Day 48
🌐 Portfolio Pitch Night
Community Experience
45m
Day 49
🎙️ Mentor Check-In Audio Debrief
Deliverable
25m
Day 50
🧾 Portfolio Defense and Gallery Walk
Assessment
45m
September 2026
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
21
Day 1
Launch
🚀 Challenge Kickoff Case Lab
22
Day 2
🏢 Ownership Models Decision Sort
23
Day 3
⚠️ Risk and Ethical AI Clinic
24
Day 4
📧 Mentor Email and Scope Draft
25
Day 5
📝 Scope Gallery Walk Revision
28
Day 6
Empathy & Research
🧭 Mentor Interview Question Clinic
29
Day 7
📊 Case File Patterns Board
30
Day 8
🏢 Ownership Tradeoff Scenarios
1
Day 9
🎤 Client Intake Interview
2
Day 10
⚖️ Risk and Ethical AI Check
October 2026
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
5
Day 11
🗺️ Empathy Map and Insight Clusters
6
Day 12
🧾 Evidence Brief Peer Tuning
7
Day 13
🚦 Research Gate Gallery Walk
8
Day 14
Define Design Brief
🧩 Evidence Cluster Wall
9
Day 15
🏢 Ownership Choice Scenarios
12
Day 16
⚠️ Risk and AI Guardrails
13
Day 17
📝 Design Brief Draft
14
Day 18
💬 Design Brief Tuning
15
Day 19
🎙️ Mentor Check-In Audio Log
16
Day 20
✅ Approved Brief and Checklist
19
Day 21
🖼️ Milestone Gallery Walk
20
Day 22
Generate Concept Options
🧠 Concept Sprint from Empathy Maps
21
Day 23
📊 Ownership and Feasibility Sort
22
Day 24
⚠️ Risk and Ethical AI Checkpoint
23
Day 25
✏️ Three Concept Boards
26
Day 26
🗣️ Tuning Protocol on Concept Boards
27
Day 27
🎙️ Mentor Check-In and Audio Debrief
28
Day 28
🧮 Weighted Decision Matrix Revision
29
Day 29
🖼️ Concept Gallery Walk Notes
30
Day 30
Prototype & Test Cycle
🚦 Prototype Test Criteria
November 2026
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
2
Day 31
🧰 Low-Fidelity Prototype Sprint
3
Day 32
🗣️ User Testing Round One
4
Day 33
📊 Feedback Log and Revision Plan
5
Day 34
🔁 Mid-Fidelity Build Revision
6
Day 35
🧪 Tuning Protocol Feedback
9
Day 36
👥 User Testing Round Two
10
Day 37
📌 Iteration Gate Gallery Walk
11
Day 38
Validate & Present
🎯 Final Validation Plan
12
Day 39
🗣️ User Check-In Notes
13
Day 40
⚖️ Risk and Ethics Decision Record
16
Day 41
🖥️ Pitch Deck Build Sprint
17
Day 42
🤝 Peer Tuning on Pitch Decks
18
Day 43
🎤 Script and Q&A Rehearsal
19
Day 44
📝 Milestone Gallery Walk Notes
20
Day 45
✅ Portfolio Defense Readiness Check
23
Day 46
Showcase
🧭 Portfolio Pitch Night Run-Through
24
Day 47
🗣️ Warm-Cool Feedback Tuning
25
Day 48
🌐 Portfolio Pitch Night
26
Day 49
🎙️ Mentor Check-In Audio Debrief
27
Day 50
🧾 Portfolio Defense and Gallery Walk