As conversations around workforce readiness continue across higher education and corporate America, one partnership has quietly spent the past decade proving what happens when education and industry work together with purpose.
Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design (PLC Detroit) and global athletic footwear and apparel powerhouse New Balance are celebrating 10 years of collaboration with the launch of the Global Design Capstone, an in-person 10-week industry credential program that gives aspiring designers the opportunity to solve the kinds of challenges they’ll encounter in a professional design studio—not years after graduation, but now.
The program isn’t built around hypothetical assignments or classroom exercises. Participants will work on an authentic New Balance design brief, collaborating across footwear design, apparel design, and color and material design to create concepts inspired by four global cities: Paris, Delhi, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo. Each city represents more than a location. It reflects a culture, a defining sport, craftsmanship traditions, and consumer behaviors that designers must understand to create products for a global marketplace.
That global perspective has become increasingly important as brands look for designers who understand not only aesthetics but also culture, storytelling, performance, and the consumers they’re designing for.
The capstone challenges participants to think beyond products. They must consider how sport influences communities, how craftsmanship shapes identity, and how culture drives innovation. The result is a collection of footwear, apparel, and color and material concepts designed specifically for female athletes while balancing performance with lifestyle and cultural relevance.
The announcement also marks an important milestone in one of the design industry’s longest-standing education partnerships.
Over the past decade, New Balance has hired more than 35 PLC alumni into full-time roles, demonstrating what can happen when companies invest in developing talent long before the hiring process begins. Rather than waiting for graduates to become workforce-ready, the partnership creates opportunities for students to build professional skills, industry relationships, and portfolios while working alongside practicing designers.
“Our partnership has always been about creating opportunities, opening doors, and preparing students with the skills, experience, and confidence to lead the future of design,” said Dr. D’Wayne Edwards, president of PLC Dettroit. “Over the past 10 years, we’ve seen what’s possible when education and industry work together with a shared purpose.”
That philosophy has become a defining characteristic of PLC Detroit.
As Michigan’s only HBCU and the nation’s only design-focused HBCU, the college was created to remove barriers for talented students who have historically been underrepresented in the design industry while connecting them directly with employers through hands-on learning and industry collaboration.
The Global Design Capstone continues that approach. Only 16 participants will be selected for the immersive program, where they’ll receive mentorship from New Balance designers, conduct global market research, develop prototypes in PLC Detroit’s Concept Maker Labs, and present their final concepts to New Balance and other industry professionals. By the end of the program, participants won’t simply leave with another project for their portfolios. They’ll leave having worked through the same collaborative, interdisciplinary design process used inside one of the world’s leading athletic brands.
For employers, that’s increasingly valuable. Across industries, companies continue to seek graduates who can think critically, collaborate across disciplines, and understand consumers beyond their own communities. Programs that combine education with real-world industry experience help close that gap while giving emerging designers a clearer pathway into competitive careers.
For PLC Detroit and New Balance, the Global Design Capstone represents more than an anniversary. It reflects a decade-long commitment to expanding access, developing talent, and demonstrating that when education mirrors the realities of the workplace, students graduate with more than knowledge—they graduate with experience.
In today’s design industry, that’s often the difference between preparing students for careers and preparing them to lead them.
The immersive program concludes with final presentations on October 29.
Applications are open through July 26 for U.S. residents ages 18 and older.
Apply here: https://egtvl.share.hsforms.com/2ZraMCgiMR_at9l6KbAGEuA
