Teens participate in summer program started by Cincinnati business owner [Video]

CINCINNATI — A group of 14 high school kids sat nervously waiting for their team’s turn to make their presentation. They had spent the past three weeks learning how to design shoes and clothing and create a cohesive business strategy around their fashion line at the Bigger Than Sneakers (BTS) Academy. Now, they just needed to present their ideas to a panel of judges.

“I’m a little emotional because like three weeks with like a group of teenagers and we actually all get along and it was really fun,” 15-year-old Mariam Barry said after her presentation. “These three weeks have been like, probably like the most fun three weeks of my summer.”

Barry will be a junior at Walnut Hills. She was thinking about getting a job for the summer, but once she was accepted into the BTS Academy, she decided spending a few weeks of her summer learning about …