Youth STEAM · Ages 15–17 · 8-Week Cohort
Ignite is where STEAM gets applied to the real world. She Builds: Ignite is an 8-week cohort for Black girls ages 15–17 that moves from exploration into execution. Participants identify a real community problem, research it, design a solution, build a prototype, and pitch it to real stakeholders.
Arts are woven throughout — because great STEAM without communication, design thinking, and narrative is just a good idea no one hears. Ignite is for girls who are ready to do something with what they know. It is academically rigorous, creatively demanding, and unapologetically centered on the genius Black girls bring to building solutions for their own communities.
| Week | Theme | What We Do |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Black Girl Genius | Whose shoulders are we standing on? A deep dive into the history and legacy of Black women in STEAM — and what their presence means for what participants are about to do. |
| Week 2 | Define Your Problem | Using design thinking methods, participants identify a real problem in their community that a STEAM solution could address. Community-centered, not classroom-centered. |
| Week 3 | Research and Evidence | How do you know what you know? Research methods — interviews, data, literature — using documentary filmmaking and journalism arts as the framework for gathering and presenting evidence. |
| Week 4 | Prototype and Build | Build the thing. Develop a first prototype or model of the solution, integrating arts and design into the construction process. Messy, iterative, and real. |
| Week 5 | Test and Iterate | Great builders revise. Test prototypes, gather feedback, and make changes. Revision is reframed as a creative practice, not a sign of failure. |
| Week 6 | Community Impact | How does this solution serve the people it is built for? Examine the work through a community impact lens and refine with the community in mind. |
| Week 7 | Pitch Prep | Design the pitch — presentation design, public speaking, and the art of telling the story of your idea in a way that moves people. The pitch is as important as the prototype. |
| Week 8 | The Ignite Pitch | Pitch solutions to a panel of real community stakeholders, professionals, and BGA leadership. A public celebration of Black girl innovation. |
Eight weeks of facilitated sessions, all prototype materials, professional pitch coaching, and access to the community stakeholder panel at the Ignite Pitch.