Keenan Burns, Detroit Cohort 1, evolved from—his words—“an awkward person who wasn’t good at public speaking or speaking to people in general” into a self-assured entrepreneur. At 16 years old, he was able to work a room full of Fortune 500 executives—a testament to the growth he experienced through our inaugural Detroit Intensive Immersion Program. Today, Keenan is a more confident, innovative, and ambitious version of himself. He continues to grow his business, Vindicta, while serving as an Alumni Youth Educator for The Hidden Genius Project and staying closely connected to his DET1 brothers, whom he considers his “found family.” This fall, Keenan will begin his journey as a Business Administration major at Schoolcraft College, aiming to build on the entrepreneurial foundation laid by The Hidden Genius Project.
How have you been?
I have been great. [High] School is amazing, I am finishing strong as a senior with a 3.8 GPA. I am enjoying all my hobbies and am really focused on getting my clothing business, Vindicta, up and running. Vindicta is mostly a streetwear brand, but I want to get it to the point where it is considered high fashion. I want to eventually start experimenting to see how I can add some uniqueness to elevate the look. Hopefully, this summer, Vindicta will be up and running. After the summer, I’m starting at Schoolcraft Community College as a Business Administration major, where I want to gain knowledge that will help my business.
How did you first learn about The Hidden Genius Project?
When I was at Cass Technical High School, my teacher brought it up in my marketing class. At first, I was lazy and wasn’t interested in the program. But somehow my mom found out about it and she made me apply to it. While I did not want to do the Immersion Program in the beginning, I am very glad I did it in the end.
What was your experience in the program like?
My experience within the program was truly life-changing. I already had knowledge of coding, since my parents supported my past dreams of becoming a game developer. When I was in the 6th grade, my parents enrolled me in another program that taught me Scratch. I also learned a little bit of Python from another self-guided program and created some games in Roblox using the Roblox coding language. The Hidden Genius Project built on that foundation and taught me more.
When I first started, I knew a lot of the knowledge, especially about Scratch. But when we got into the second summer and learned Swift, I felt like I was being challenged and started to expand into subjects that I didn’t know about before. By the end of the program, my interest shifted from game development to entrepreneurship. I truly enjoyed the entrepreneurship track as it became my career choice, and I learned things that I was able to implement into my business.
Tell me about some of the challenges you’ve faced while in The Hidden Genius Project. How did you overcome them?
During the program, a challenge I faced was keeping up with some of the lessons. Some of them were a bit challenging for me, but learning when to tell someone I need help and relying on my brothers got me through.
The brotherhood that was cultivated in DET1 was truly something special. As we got to really know each other, it became second nature and very easy to ask for help. From the beginning, the DET1 had this natural bond, and I feel like I could trust them with anything. It feels like I found people that I can call my brothers for life.
Describe the final project you created during your time in the Immersion Program.
My final project was a complete e-commerce website for my clothing brand, Vindicta. It came complete with a home page, shopping page, about us page, and contact page where you can actually contact me via email with any questions or concerns. I did encounter one big challenge while making the website because I tried the advanced method of coding the contact page. I spent 1 or 2 weeks working on it, but I couldn’t figure out how to make it work. When I pivoted to the simpler method, I got it up and running in 10 minutes. I feel like with coding, you could get stumped on something for a long time, but then one tiny pivot could solve all of your problems. But the struggle was worth it to create my website, because I got to be innovative and turn my clothing brand into a reality.
How is The Hidden Genius Project different from other mentorship or training experiences that you have been involved in?
The Hidden Genius Project is different from other mentorships because it is filled with people who look just like me, and call themselves my brothers. It is truly a more personal and intimate bond that you can’t really find elsewhere. While in The Hidden Genius Project, I learned about true brotherhood. The brotherhood I found in DET1 was life-changing. I have truly found brothers for life through thick and thin.
What specific skills learned in The Hidden Genius Project have been most beneficial for you?
The first was market analysis, which is the ability to analyze a target market, what they like, and how to cater to them. Since I was in the business track and I have taught the business track as an Alumni Youth Educator, I have had the opportunity to apply it in teaching and in practice. I don’t think a lot of people realize the importance of analyzing your target audience, but when I was really starting to learn market analysis, it became very clear to me that I need to be intentional with my clothing line to cater to my target audience. Once I started to think about this, running a business has become a whole lot easier.
The other important skill I learned was public speaking and presenting. Before the Intensive Immersion Program, I considered myself an awkward person who wasn’t good at public speaking or speaking to people in general. I was really awkward at approaching people. Over the course of the program, I got better at it, and now that I am an alum, I feel like a master at it. In 2023, I went to the Disney Dreamers Academy, a program where Disney selects 100 high schoolers to participate in. During the program, we had the chance to network with super important people who have a net worth of millions of dollars. My past self would have found that intimidating, but because of The Hidden Genius Project and the skills I learned, I felt comfortable approaching these executives and networking with them with confidence.
How do you think your path might have been different if you hadn’t participated in The Hidden Genius Project?
Before the program, I was a completely different person. I might not have taken entrepreneurship as seriously, and I wouldn’t have been able to build key skills, like public speaking and market analysis, that I use in just about every day in life. The me before The Hidden Genius Project was a lot less outgoing, didn’t really know what I wanted to do in life, and didn’t have many friends. Now I have many brothers whom I talk to on a daily basis, I am pursuing entrepreneurship, and I am not scared to speak up. Between my brothers and all the staff, I have built relationships that I will have for life. I feel like I would have been an entirely different person who doesn’t have the relationships I have, met the people I’ve met, and have the confidence to pursue my passions.
In what ways have you remained involved with The Hidden Genius Project since completing the 15-month Intensive Immersion program?
I have come back as a Youth Educator, teaching the business track, for the past two years, and I always make it a point to visit on Intensive Immersion Programming days to stay connected with the staff. The staff of The Hidden Genius Project has supplied me with many other great programs and opportunities to take advantage of, stay connected with me on a personal level, and help me with things that may not have anything to do with school or The Hidden Genius Project.
If you could talk to yourself just before you applied, what is one thing you would say?
You may not want to do it now, but trust me. Apply.
What words of encouragement do you have for future Geniuses?
Learning is a journey, not a race. You’re making progress every day.
Since 2012, nearly 11,400 students have revealed their genius through our Immersion, Catalyst, and Community Partner Programs, and so many more are waiting to shine.
HELP NEW GENIUSES STEP INTO THE SPOTLIGHT.
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