CEL

Students Entrepreneur Business Education

BUSINESS + DESIGN + TECHNOLOGY

The Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (CEL) is committed to developing an entrepreneurial mindset and skillset in every student at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. The CEL program enhances Pre-K through Grade 12 education with learning opportunities and classes that empower students to shape their futures and the world.

THE ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET

At SCH, entrepreneurship is an approach to problem solving. The CEL program prioritizes the development of four key traits that comprise the entrepreneurial mindset: opportunity seeking, creative problem solving, resiliency, and resourcefulness. Equipped with this mindset, our students take on interesting challenges rooted in their passions and graduate with a competitive advantage. To instill this mindset in every student, CEL is integrated into the curriculum. Project-based challenges in the classroom provide an opportunity for students to build this way of thinking while practicing entrepreneurial skills in the areas of business, design, and technology.

Our Unique Approach

Pre K — 4th Grade

Elementary School Boys Shop Day Innovation Entrepreneurship — Our Lower School boys participate in Market Day, where students create their own business venture from top to bottom. They make a product, set a price point, and host an open market where parents, faculty, and fellow students are able to shop around. All proceeds from Market Day go to Kiva—a non-profit organization and online lending platform that connects lenders to entrepreneurs.

Lower School Curriculum

Design Challenges

Every year, Pre-K—4th grade students tackle at least one unique CEL project. They channel boundless creativity and curiosity into real-world challenges by solving problems for others. Students are often inspired to pursue environmentally focused ventures as they observe the nature surrounding our campus. Through these design-thinking experiences, they learn to see problems as opportunities to create solutions.

Teamwork

After observing a problem in their immediate world, students begin to learn more about whom it affects and how. They work collaboratively in small teams and as a class to interview community members, ask questions of experts, and conduct online research. Using this new information, they brainstorm possible solutions and decide together what idea they will try first. Throughout the project, every child has the opportunity to take on different roles within the team and learn more about their own strengths.

Finance

As much as creative thinking is encouraged in our problem-solving process, feasibility is also an important consideration for our young entrepreneurs. Oftentimes, their prototypes require supplies that are not readily available on campus. We challenge our older students to fund budgets for these purchases by selling goods, hosting fundraisers, and negotiating payment for tasks at home. As they research costs and earn money, they are introduced to the ideas of profit, loans, and interest as well as the value of time and money.

Communicate

The design process doesn't end at the completion of the first prototype. Students practice effective communication of their ideas using technology, writing, and most importantly, their own voices. In sharing progress with others in the community, they receive feedback and new ideas that can potentially inform the next version of the solution. Throughout the entire design process, students practice interpersonal communication and relationship building with their teammates and mentors.

5th — 9th Grade

middle school students recording studio learn audio production

5th Grade Curriculum

Adventures in New Media
Just as painters use paintbrushes, students in this media class learn how to use digital technologies to express themselves in a rapidly converging world. Through a variety of project-based experiences, students build robots; learn digital fabrication skills like 3D printing, laser cutting, and vinyl cutting; and even create interactive sound and video assets.

Other classes include:
Digital Storytelling-Audio
Collaboration & Teamwork

6th Grade Curriculum

Social Entrepreneurship
Through the KIVA web platform, students research and identify entrepreneurs in developing regions of the world seeking small loans for their ventures. The students create and sell products to raise funds, then use the proceeds to make micro-loans to the entrepreneurs. To date, students in this course have made 107 loans in 39 countries, totaling more than $4,500

Other classes include:
LEGO Robotics
Digital Storytelling-Video

7th Grade Curriculum

8th Grade Curriculum

9th Grade Curriculum

Design & Fabrication
Students learn to envision, draw, and use the laser cutter to create 2D parts that assemble into a 3D structure. Short projects are designed to introduce students to the laser cutter, vinyl cutter, and silhouette printer while familiarizing them with the necessary computer skills to realize their designs. These skills are studied further in both the Engineering and New Media course in 10th grade.

Other classes include:
Electronics & Microprocessors
Intro to App Development
Research, Data, & Analytics

10th — 12th Grade

Upper School Entrepreneurship Innovation Project

CEL CAPSTONE

All SCH sophomores engage in the CEL Capstone—a unique, self-directed project-design experience. With the support of dedicated faculty mentors and access to specialized studios, students bring ideas inspired by their personal passions to life using the business, design, and technology skills learned in previous CEL classes. There are four distinct stages to the Capstone process: discover, define, design, and deliver. Students may elect to continue their work in their junior and senior years through the Venture Accelerator.

Venture Accelerator

High School Student Entrepreneurs Business Curriculum Education

INCUBATOR & ACCELERATOR

The CEL Venture Incubator and Venture Accelerator are two elective programs for students who are interested in pursuing a business venture beyond the CEL core curriculum. Individuals or teams apply to participate by submitting their ideas for review and, if selected, they are partnered with experienced mentors who guide them through the various phases of taking an idea from rough concept to authentic outcome.

STORIES FROM CEL

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