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Digital Media Academy & Stanford Educators Present:

The Global Student Innovation Race

July 02-14, 2023 in Silicon Valley

A once-in-a-life time opportunity for student groups (13-18yrs) to learn from Stanford Educators, travel to Silicon Valley, and take part in an exciting Innovation Challenge.

Innovate for Impact: Join the Race to Tackle Global Challenges & Design the Future with AI and Human-Centered Design Thinking.

Ignite your students’ creativity and innovation skills with this immersive experience at the heart of Silicon Valley, where they’ll learn from Stanford Educators and unlock the power of AI to design solutions that will shape the future.

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Empower Your Students as Future Change-Makers

Over the course of 13 days (12 nights), students from all over the world will descend on Silicon Valley for this year’s DMA Global Student Innovation Race. It’s a race against time to solve one problem…

How can we use AI to solve a pressing societal issue in a human-centered and sustainable way?

Phase 1: Design Thinking

Students will learn the fundamental skills of human-centered design, the right mindsets to understand human needs, the ability to switch between divergent and convergent thinking during the creative process, and the power of iteration to frame problems and develop solutions.

They’ll also experience “building to think” – a fundamental principle that allows you to bring your ideas to life and refine them in real-time.

Phase 2: Social Thinking

Students will enhance their personal and academic growth while developing an international network of lifelong friends and fellow innovators for life. They’ll learn how to collaborate while building trust and safety in groups. This process involves creating a comfortable context for interaction, reducing awkwardness and fostering openness.

By making space for vulnerability and transparency, students will learn to encourage responsiveness, ensuring that everyone feels heard and valued.

Phase 3: Entrepreneurial Thinking

In an ever-shifting world, it’s crucial for students to learn how to create compelling, sustainable value in any field they choose. The key is to think like an entrepreneur. By understanding potential markets, developing a strong value proposition, and creating a path to financial sustainability, students will be well on their way to success.

This experience will also teach them the skills of sales and marketing, enabling them to effectively communicate the value of their ideas to others.

At the end of the race students will have created a concept and prototype for a new way to use AI and will showcase their newfound skills in the FutureTech Showcase.

They will leave with an innovation portfolio and return home inspired by their peers and mentors, with stories and ideas that will propel them into their future careers.

There’s Plenty For Teachers Too!

More than just a student experience, it’s an opportunity for you to future-proof your teaching

  • Observe and support students as they develop AI prototypes

  • Access to cutting-edge, world-class thinking and hands-on learning experiences

  • Professional development workshops and networking opportunities with renowned Stanford Educators

  • Receive a DMA professional development certificate in design thinking
  • Did we mention the entire experience is free when you bring a minimum of 5 students?

Designed & Led by Stanford Educators…

Glenn Fajardo

Stanford Educator | Former Director of Co-Design Practice @ TechSoup

Glenn Fajardo, connects to create, exploring how we can be creative together when we are far apart and in different cultural contexts. He has been part of the Stanford d.school teaching community since 2014 and was the Stanford d.school’s Distributed Learning Teaching Fellow in 2020.

For 14 years, Glenn has been a practitioner of virtual collaboration, working with people and organizations across six continents engaged in social impact work. Glenn is the co-author (with Kursat Ozenc) of Rituals for Virtual Meetings: Creative Ways to Engage People and Strengthen Relationships.

Glenn was formerly the Director of the Co-Design Practice of the TechSoup Global Network at TechSoup, a nonprofit social enterprise founded on the belief that technology can be a powerful enabler for greater social change. Formally trained in nuclear engineering sciences and public policy, Glenn also plays electric bass and likes to cook in other people’s kitchens.

Speakers…

Prashant Loyalka

Associate Professor of Education and Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University

Andre Nudelman

Chairman @ DMA | Entrepreneur in residence at the Stanford Graduate School of Education

Chris Bennett

Affiliate, Stanford Graduate School of Education | Game Designer

Guest Speaker John Mitchell

John Mitchell

Mary and Gordon Crary Family Professor | professor of computer science | By courtesy professor of electrical engineering and professor of education

Activities & Experiences

*The specific schedule and destinations may change 

One of the world’s leading research and teaching institutions, Stanford University is a globally renowned education destination known for catalyzing discovery, accelerating solutions, sustaining life on Earth, and preparing citizens for 21st-century life and work. Stanford University alumni are entrepreneurs that have gone on to develop some of the most influential digital media companies in the world from Netflix to Google.

Be inspired by visits to leading technology companies in Silicon Valley such as Google, Tesla , Meta (Facebook), Apple, OpenAI, and more. 

Learn how technology is used around the world at the Computer History Museum and the Intel Museum. Inspire future engineers and learn about the beginnings of the computer chip, and its layers of complex circuitry. Have your students learn to code with the museum’s interactive displays and understand how Intel was established. These museums will give your students a broad understanding of how technology, innovation, and new discoveries can shape business in today’s world.

Registration Deadline March 31st

July 02-14, 2023
Students aged: 13-18 years old
Student Tuition: $6,900 USD + airfare
Teacher Fees: FREE!*
Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:10 (min. 5 students)

* Program fees included + subsidized airfare. Limitations apply. Please see the Info Package for more details.

Join the Global Innovation Race!