A Startup Academy Built for High Schoolers

Twelve days to build a business from scratch, or grow one, and learn what it takes to be an entrepreneur. That’s what the U is offering high schoolers this summer.

The new Lassonde Startup Academy puts students ages 14-18 inside Lassonde Studios—a five-story building where they’ll stay on the upper floors and work in a 20,000-square-foot “makerspace” below.

The space houses 3D printers, laser cutters, and prototyping equipment—everything students need to move from concept to finished product. And they can show up with a business idea already brewing or start from scratch.

“Join the academy to get a firsthand look at every step in the startup process, from ideation and prototyping to marketing and sales,” says Anne Bastien BS’05 MBA’10, staff director of the Startup Academy. “The experience will conclude with a demo day event where students can showcase and sell their products.”

The inaugural session runs just under two weeks through the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute—ranked among the top 10 university entrepreneurship programs in the country by U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review. Days center on entrepreneurial workshops and hands-on building time. Evenings shift to social activities. The program also offers college credit.

“Students will learn by doing. They’ll get their hands dirty building products and will learn what it takes to create a business,” says Scott Holley BA’02, the institute’s executive director.

The institute already serves everyone from college students to alumni through programs like the Master of Business Creation—which blends a graduate business degree with a business accelerator—and Lassonde for Life, which provides entrepreneurial support to all U graduates. Now, the academy extends that reach to a younger generation.

Applications are open now at lassonde.utah.edu/academy. Scholarships are available based on merit and need.