The first cohort of Media Lab Director’s Fellows came together at ML in July for an informal retreat of brainstorming, workshops, demos, fun, and community. Kids from the Boston chapter of the Intel Computer Clubhouse were added to this mix; they took tours of ML and participated in some of the Director’s Fellows workshops:

• Fashion design 101: Christopher Bevans, award-winning designer best known for his work with the Billionaire Boys Club, Nike, and Adidas, will be hosting a workshop teaching the basics of apparel design techniques and sharing industry tips.
• Make your own speaker: Learn all about how sound systems work and make your own speakers with Jeff Sturges, founder of the Mt. Elliott Makerspace in Detroit, Michigan.
• Learn chess from a grandmaster: Learn basic chess strategy, tactics, and how to think differently from the first African-American chess grandmaster, Maurice Ashley.
• Storytelling: Author and activist Shaka Senghor uses the power of the written word to keep kids out of prison in Detroit. Comedian Baratunde Thurston was the Director of Digital at The Onion and is the author of How To Be Black. Join both of them as they coach us through a workshop on storytelling as a tool for change.

The Director’s Fellows, and their coordinator Lisa Katayama, have blogged about some of their own experiences at http://dfellows.media.mit.edu/