Young people are expected to contribute here — to projects, to operations, to the business. In exchange they get real tools, real mentors, real customers, and a real shot at finding out what they're good at.
The makerspace floor
One is open, free and exploratory. The other is a structured cohort for young people who already know they want this. Plenty of people do both.
Free · ages 10–24 · after school & weekends
Community-based programming in career exploration, leadership, employability skills, entrepreneurship, creativity and community engagement. Supported through AYCC, and aligned to AYCC/BGCE goals around healthy lifestyles, academic success, good character and workforce development.
It's meant to be welcoming first and skill-building second. Come see.
Structured · primarily ages 14–18
An entrepreneurial workforce development cohort: curriculum, leadership development, workforce readiness training, mentorship, microcredentials and badges, business incubation, project-based learning and real work experience.
Funded through our NBRC initiative, focused on manufacturing and product development, agriculture and culinary, retail and customer service, professional services, and community-based business development.
CES delivers Babson College's EPIC curriculum — the Entrepreneurship Program for Innovators and Changemakers — grounded in Babson's Entrepreneurial Thought & Action methodology. Opportunity identification, innovation, prototyping, social entrepreneurship, collaboration, leadership, community problem-solving.
Participants don't just study it. They apply it on the workforce teams, in the makerspace, in the gardens, at the pop-up markets, at the register. Students who complete the curriculum may receive certificates through Babson's Youth Impact Lab.
Alongside it runs leadership and professional development delivered through Bridge the Gap Consultants, connected to Bentley-affiliated methodologies: identity and purpose, service and leadership, applied finance, communication, teamwork, marketing, professionalism.
Each week is built around three sessions — one for hands-on innovation, one for sewing and creative production, and one for advanced entrepreneurship. Each is led by a professional working in that field. That's not incidental; it's the whole reason it works.
Led by Chinloo Lama
Participants engage in hands-on design and fabrication work, learning to turn ideas into real products. Programming incorporates entrepreneurial concepts connected to the Babson EPIC framework.
Led by Lynne Buchheit
Participants engage in hands-on sewing and creative production while developing practical skills connected to product design, craftsmanship, entrepreneurship, and makerspace-based business development. Work often ends up in the CES store, pop-up shops, or a young person's own line.
Led by Sal Lama
Participants apply entrepreneurial thinking and leadership development through advanced hands-on work and real business challenges — a next step for youth ready to take on more responsibility.
Young people join a pathway based on what interests them, what's happening, and how much responsibility they want. Nobody's locked in.
Laser engraving, 3D printing, product design, prototyping, branding and merchandising.
Where it can goProduct launches · retail inventory · online sales · ventures of your own
Gardening, food systems, the farmstand, canning and food prep, seasonal projects, community markets.
Where it can goFarmstand sales · food products · event-based enterprise
Led by Andrew Moffitt
Landscaping, outdoor maintenance, painting and repair, seasonal cleanup, property improvement, tool safety.
Where it can goA real first look at the trades and service-based business
Customer service, retail operations, merchandising, photography and media, social, marketing, admin.
Where it can goLeadership roles · marketing portfolios · retail management skills
Responsibility is earned here, not assigned. Each rung means more trust, more freedom, and more people depending on you.
Participants get access to the storefront, the makerspace, the Whittier Road farmstand, youth-led pop-up marketplaces, seasonal markets and community events. These are laboratories with a register attached.
Test the product. Build the brand. Talk to the customer who picked it up and put it back down. Find out what a margin is. Nobody grades this; the shelf does.
Workplace safety is part of the program, not a form you sign. Participants get hands-on makerspace safety instruction, tool and equipment training, emergency procedures, and coaching on workplace professionalism and communication.
Weekend open lab may be available for participants working on makerspace projects, product development, business planning or curriculum. It's not an instructional period and supervision is limited — you work independently, follow the safety rules, and leave the space better than you found it.
Some workforce experiences follow the weather, the season, the customer's schedule or the contract. Participants may be contacted outside regular program hours when a job comes up. That's not a bug — it's what the work is actually like.
Bring a young person, or come see the makerspace in action.
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