The Pathways Foundation and Michigan's Graham Family Athletics Career Center have launched the AI Career Accelerator — a seven-week hybrid program that helps transitioning athletes and ambitious young people turn AI fluency into real career momentum. The Summer 2026 cohort runs June 15 through July 31.
Built around participants' schedules at roughly two to three hours per week, the Accelerator blends self-paced certification with live sessions led by former pro athletes turned operators and a real capstone challenge from a company sponsor.
By the end, every participant walks away with:
How it works: The program runs in four phases — build fundamentals and certification (Weeks 1–3), a real-world capstone kickoff with a company partner (Week 4), mentor-supported capstone development (Weeks 5–6), and final presentations with career integration (Week 7).
Participants learn from a lineup of accomplished guides, including capstone lead Marcus Peterson, MBA (NFL alum and CEO of Pro Edge Branding), Steve Davis, Dr. Barb Lash, Quentin Gause, Eddie Gill, and Shelton Banks.
