Explore the Future: Generative AI for High School Innovators
From Data to Generative AI: A Journey through Machine Learning
What is Generative AI? Are you curious about how ChatGPT writes essays, how AI can generate images from text, or how machines can create music, stories, and videos?
IF YES, THIS COURSE IS FOR YOU!
Do you want to write an excellent essay for your college application? Do you want to secure educational scholarships?
IF YES, GENERATIVE AI MAY BE ABLE TO HELP YOU
Do you want to explore how Generative AI can open new career opportunities for you?
IF YES, THIS COURSE CAN HELP YOU EXPLORE CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Whether you are a tech enthusiast, a creative thinker, or just curious about how the tools of the future are being built today, this course will guide you through the fundamental concepts, ethical debates, and real-world applications of generative AI.
What you will learn
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Understand how generative AI works – from neural networks to transformers like GPT and DALL·E.
- Create content with AI tools – use platforms like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and Llama to write stories, design graphics, and generate music.
- Analyze ethical and social implications – explore bias, misinformation, creativity, authorship, and responsible AI use.
- Develop your own AI mini-project – pitch and present a creative application of generative AI to solve a real-world problem or express a unique idea.
- Build foundational knowledge in machine learning concepts like training data, model outputs, and prompt engineering.
Who should enroll?
- Students in Grades 9–12
- No prior coding or AI knowledge necessary
- Ideal for aspiring creators, engineers, designers, entrepreneurs, and critical thinkers
Pre-requisites
To excel in this course, you must be:
- Curious
- Open to learning
- Comfortable with basic use of computers
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Title: From Data to Generative AI: A Journey through Machine Learning
Duration: 2 weeks (10 sessions, 2 hours per session, with a 15-minutes break)
Objective: This course will introduce high school students to the fundamentals of machine learning, artificial intelligence, and generative AI. Students will learn how these technologies work, explore real-world applications, and gain hands-on experience building simple AI models. By the end of the course, students will have a foundational understanding of AI concepts and the ability to create basic AI-powered projects.
Prerequisites: Basic computer skills and an interest in technology. No prior programming experience is required, but a strong willingness to learn is expected.
DETAILED COURSE OUTLINE
Week 1: Foundations of Machine Learning and AI
Session 1: Introduction to AI and Machine Learning
- Real-world applications of AI (e.g., self-driving cars, recommendation systems)
- Behind the cool stuffs: What is AI? History and evolution of AI
- Types of AI: Narrow AI, General AI, and Superintelligence
- Money matters: Career potentials in ML, AI, GenAI
Session 2: How Machines Learn
- Supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning
- Hands-on: Exploring pre-trained ML models
- For example, text or image classification models
Session 3: Data in Machine Learning
- Importance of data in AI
- Structured data vs unstructured data
- Data collection, cleaning, and preprocessing
- Hands-on: building a dataset from unstructured information
Session 4: Machine Learning with AWS
- Exploring Amazon SageMaker Canvas
- Building and Deploying Machine Learning Models
Session 5: Building Our First ML Model
- Training and testing a model
- Hands-on: Building a simple classifier or predictive model
Week 2: Generative AI and more
Session 6: Introduction to Generative AI
- What is generative AI?
- Applications: Text generation, image generation, music composition
- Hands-on: Exploring a generative AI tool (e.g., ChatGPT, DALL-E)
Session 7: Neural Networks and Deep Learning
- Basics of neural networks and ANN
- How deep learning works
- Simple examples of ANNs
Session 8: Natural Language Processing (NLP)
- How machines understand and generate text
- Applications: Chatbots, translation, sentiment analysis
- Hands-on: Building a simple chatbot with Amazon SageMaker AI or similar tool
Session 9: Ethics and Societal Impact of AI
- Bias in AI systems, privacy concerns, and data security
- What you can and can’t do with GenAI
- Group discussion: Ethical dilemmas in AI
Session 10: Capstone Project and Showcase
- Students can work individually or in teams to build a simple AI project (e.g., a recommendation system, a text generator, or an image classifier)
- Present projects to the class
Course wrap-up and certificates of completion
TWO-WEEK SUMMER COURSE
Program Schedule:
- Dates: July 7-18, 2025
- Days: Monday – Friday (10 sessions total)
- Time: 8:00 – 10:00 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)
- Tuition: In-State Tuition: $400
- Out-of-State Tuition: $1,000
Virginia High school students in grades 9-11 are invited to participate in an essay contest exploring the future of artificial intelligence. Essay submissions should be 800-1,000 words in length and reflect on how AI is shaping society, education, work, or ethics, imagining what lies ahead. Five essay contest winners will receive a scholarship to attend a new summer school on generative AI offered by Virginia Tech's Center for Future Work Places and Practices, where participants will dive into the technology and its real-world applications. This is a unique opportunity for young thinkers to share their vision and take a step toward becoming future AI leaders.
- Submission Deadline: June 20, 2025
- Notification of Award: June 30, 2025
- Please submit your essay and a CV to vtcfwpp@gmail.com
This scholarship is generously supported by Professor David Wang from Virginia Tech Department of Economics, in loving memory of his grandmother, Yuzhi Yang, who recently passed away.