About the Program

SummerUp-AIProgram is an 8-week in-person summer program designed for Black youth across Ontario to explore Artificial Intelligence as a tool for creativity, critical thinking, and community problem solving. Hosted in Toronto, the program includes hands-on learning, team projects, and mentorship that spark curiosity and confidence in AI.

Program Structure

• Week 1: Introduction to AI & Community Impact
  • What is AI? Where is AI used today?
  • Exploring community challenges that matter to students
  • Team formation and problem brainstorming
• Week 2: Data & Patterns – Intro to Coding
  • Understanding data and why it matters
  • Hands-on exploration using Teachable Machine
  • Basic logic and classification activities
• Week 3: Talking with AI – Language & Chatbots
  • How AI understands language
  • Build a simple chatbot (e.g., Scratch or Python-based)
  • Fun with auto-complete and word prediction tools
• Week 4: Seeing with AI – Images & Ethics
  • Explore how AI sees images (image classification)
  • Face recognition demos and fairness discussions
  • Using Quick, Draw! and object detection tools
• Week 5: Project Proposal & Approval
  • Teams present project ideas
  • Mentor feedback and project refinement
  • Finalize plans and assign roles
• Week 6: Project Build – Part 1
  • Begin hands-on building of projects
  • Work with mentors and test early versions
  • Debugging and iteration
• Week 7: Project Build – Part 2
  • Continue building and polish final versions
  • Prepare posters, presentations, and demos
  • Practice presenting to peers and mentors
• Week 8: Showcase & Celebration
  • Final project presentations to families and guests
  • Guest feedback and celebration
  • Certificates and closing reflections

Time: Weekly in-person sessions (3 hours/week)

Location: 155 College Street, Room 569, University of Toronto – St. George Campus

Weekly Activities

• Hands-on coding and AI exploration (no experience needed)
• Mentorship from AI researchers and community leaders
• Team-based community projects with real-world impact
• Creative tools (chatbots, visual AI, storytelling)
• Final showcase presentation with guests and certificates