Rite Aid Reboot: Teen Dream Hub

Learning Goals & Products

Learning Goals

Students will be able to investigate teen needs and community assets for the old Rite Aid teen center using surveys, interviews, and site observations to identify evidence-based priorities over 7 weeks with 2 75-minute sessions per week.

Students will be able to analyze the old Rite Aid building layout and define adjacency needs, circulation, safety, and accessibility to create a functional teen center floor plan over 7 weeks with 2 75-minute sessions per week.

Students will be able to prototype activity zones, welcome-space features, and technology-supported design elements for a teen center to test how the space supports belonging and use over 7 weeks with 2 75-minute sessions per week.

Students will be able to construct a realistic startup and operating budget for the teen center using funding sources, estimated costs, and grant or sponsor options to justify feasibility over 7 weeks with 2 75-minute sessions per week.

Students will be able to refine and justify a teen center proposal using peer and community feedback to show how revisions improve welcoming, safe, and useful outcomes for teens over 7 weeks with 2 75-minute sessions per week.

Products

individual

Teen User Research Portfolio and Concept Prototype

Each student will compile firsthand research on teen needs and translate it into one testable individual prototype for the old Rite Aid teen center. The portfolio will show how evidence from users informed a design idea that can feed the team plan.

team

Old Rite Aid Teen Center Proposal Board and Pitch Deck

Teams will create a shared problem statement, revised floor plan, program schedule, budget, and higher-fidelity prototype for an authentic stakeholder audience. The final presentation will explain how individual research shaped the team solution and what feedback led to revisions.

Rubric

Competency Progression Rubric Competency-first rubric

Category	Learning Goal	Stage 1	Stage 2	Stage 3	Stage 4
Deeper Learning Competencies	Collaboration	I can work with my team to share ideas for our teen center proposal and follow agreed roles and simple decision rules I can contribute at least one research or design task (like sorting needs, updating a site map, or drafting part of a floor-plan zone) and show respect for others’ contributions.	I can co-design with my team by listening to peers, building on their ideas, and making shared decisions about layout, program, or funding based on evidence from our community input I can resolve minor disagreements by discussing options and coming to a consensus that improves our draft design and written plan.	I can lead collaborative design work by coordinating roles, managing timelines, and using structured feedback during critiques to revise our teen center concept I can collaborate on technical choices (including technology-supported design elements and how our space will feel in use) and clearly explain how our team’s changes reflect community needs and partner input.	I can independently manage high-quality collaboration by facilitating team processes (such as dividing complex tasks, tracking feedback, and supporting equitable participation) while still honoring shared authority I can integrate multiple perspectives into a coherent, testable proposal—then revise our final pitch materials and prototype elements in response to panel feedback, documenting how the collaboration directly improved realism, welcomingness, safety, and usefulness for local teens.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Critical Thinking & Problem Solving	I can identify a teen need and a site constraint (like space, safety, access, or technology limits) and propose at least one basic design idea that addresses the need using evidence from my class research.	I can compare multiple design options for the old Rite Aid teen center, explain why each option better or worse addresses teen needs and site constraints, and revise my choices after feedback or new findings.	I can create and justify a coherent set of design decisions (layout, activity zones, and technology-supported features) that transform the experience of the space, linking each choice to specific community data and safety/welcoming considerations.	I can independently re-imagine and iteratively improve the proposal by testing assumptions, using critique from peers and community partners, and refining technical design elements to maximize real-world impact on how teens feel safe, welcome, and supported.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Effective Communication	I can use active listening and respectful questions during team critique to understand what feedback means and identify 1–2 changes I will make to my teen-center proposal I can clearly share my ideas to peers using draft notes, sketches, or slides that match the team’s work-in-progress.	I can communicate my design reasoning with evidence from community needs (survey/interview notes and site observations) and explain how it connects to specific space/program choices I can revise my pitch materials after feedback and present my updated ideas in a way that others can follow, using clear visuals (e.g., adjacency sketches, zone diagrams, sample weekly schedule).	I can present a complete, coherent proposal to different audiences by tailoring my message (welcome, safety, usefulness) and using persuasive language supported by data and constraints I can incorporate technology and design elements into my pitch (e.g., prototype signage/welcome-space mock-up, digital slides, or a tech-informed tech/lighting/audio idea) and explain how those choices enhance the teen experience.	I can lead communication with community partners by synthesizing multiple sources of feedback and making strategic, justified revisions that improve both feasibility and impact I can deliver and refine a polished public pitch with a strong Q&A response, clearly connecting evidence, revised floor-plan/service decisions, and a realistic funding/budget plan to the needs of local teens.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Content Expertise	I can create a basic teen-center concept that shows I understand the site and can connect at least one design choice to a stated teen need (welcoming, safe, or useful) I can use evidence from my community input (survey/interview notes) to justify my choices with simple reasoning in my floor-plan or program ideas.	I can develop a more complete teen-center proposal by designing multiple space zones and activities that respond to teen needs and real site constraints I can explain how my layout and programming decisions are supported by community data and I can revise technical choices (e.g., accessibility, visibility, safety considerations, or simple technology-support ideas) after feedback.	I can design a technically thoughtful, evidence-based teen-center plan that transforms the experience of the old Rite Aid building into a place teens will actually want to use I can justify my adjacency, flow, and activity-zone decisions using community findings, and I can integrate technology elements (such as signage/digital supports, media-ready spaces, or tech-enabled programming) with clear purpose and tradeoffs.	I can independently refine a polished, realistic teen-center proposal by re-imagining and improving technical design choices throughout the critique process to maximize safety, belonging, and usefulness for specific teen groups I can show advanced understanding by connecting detailed evidence (data patterns, assets, constraints, budget feasibility) to every major design and technology choice, and I can clearly articulate how feedback changed my final plan.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Academic Mindset	I can describe my role and next steps as I work on transforming the old Rite Aid building into a teen center, using feedback moments to stay on track I can identify what I need to learn or collect (such as teen-needs notes or site constraints) to improve my team’s plan.	I can set personal learning goals for how my design thinking will improve the teen-center proposal (welcoming, safe, and useful) and monitor my progress as we revise I can use feedback from peers and community partners to make clear changes to at least one part of my work, like a zone idea, schedule element, or design detail.	I can consistently revise my ideas based on evidence (survey results, interview notes, and site limits) and explain why my changes make the proposal more realistic and helpful to teens I can demonstrate resilience by adjusting my technical design choices—such as technology-supported features, signage, or layout decisions—when critique shows gaps.	I can lead my own learning by iterating thoughtfully and independently through multiple rounds of critique until my design decisions are strong, specific, and justified I can articulate how my revisions transform the experience of the place for teens and connect my choices to community needs, including outlining a next-step plan for turning the proposal into a feasible reality.