Harrisburg U Launches Side Hustle School for Families

Harrisburg University of Science and Technology is putting a new spin on the teen side hustle: Side Hustle School: Family Edition, a seven-week program in which high school students work alongside a parent, grandparent, or caregiver to turn a business idea into a working venture.

The program was formally introduced on Monday, Sept. 21, at a press event hosted by PMI at its offices in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, according to Harrisburg University. University president Dr. Christopher M. Reber, Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship project coordinator Michael Hughes, and entrepreneur in residence Jay Jayamohan were joined by community partners including PMI president Eric Kunkle. PMI is donating meeting space for Side Hustle School, whose first cohort begins October 14.

"We spend a lot of time talking about preparing young people for the future," Hughes said. "But what if we could give students an opportunity to begin building that future right now, and do it alongside their families?"

What the seven weeks look like

Side Hustle School starts where the university says every successful venture starts: a real person with a real problem. Families learn to spot problems worth solving before touching a logo or a website, then identify potential customers, test assumptions, and design a business model around the answers.

The money questions come early. Jayamohan, who designed the curriculum and will teach the program, said families work through practical questions such as what it will cost to create the product, what to charge, how much they must sell, and whether they are actually making money. The curriculum also covers branding, marketing, social media, e-commerce, and pitching.

Rather than sitting through lectures, families spend the seven weeks in the field: interviewing customers, working with coaches, building prototypes, getting feedback, and revising. Side Hustle School ends with a community showcase where each family presents what it built. If a first idea does not survive the process, Jayamohan said, that is part of the lesson. "That is not failure. That is entrepreneurship."

Why families, not just students

Reber said he was not aware of another program like Side Hustle School that brings students and their parents, grandparents, or caregivers together to learn the same skills and build the same venture. He pointed to the old saying "shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations," about family businesses that fade once they are handed down. "These families aren't inheriting a business," he said. "They're building one together, which means the buy-in is there from the first day."

Jayamohan said the generations bring different strengths. The student may understand social media better, while the parent or grandparent may bring professional experience, community relationships, or practical judgment. He joked that there may be some spirited family negotiations about who gets to be CEO.

He described Side Hustle School as "Little League for future entrepreneurs," and offered another comparison: "Build-A-Bear meets Shark Tank." The difference, he said, is that families leave with practical skills, greater confidence, and a working business idea instead of a teddy bear.

Reber tied Side Hustle School to the university's mission of expanding access in Central Pennsylvania. "Simply put, talent is spread evenly across Central Pennsylvania," he said. "Opportunity is not." He added that success will look like a 16-year-old who knows what it takes to get a business off the ground and walks back into school a different person, with confidence earned by doing it.

Jayamohan also framed entrepreneurial thinking as a life skill for the age of AI. "Technology still needs people who can ask better questions, recognize meaningful problems, exercise judgment, connect with others, and turn possibilities into action," he said.

Why it lands in the side hustle moment

Side Hustle School arrives as side hustles keep moving from hobby to serious income. Gen Z is already deep in it: half of young side-hustle owners now put in full-time hours on their ventures. New research from Network Solutions, reported by Black Enterprise, found that side hustlers using AI tools reported average monthly earnings of $555, compared with $333 for those who did not, though the researchers cautioned the link is correlation rather than proof the tools caused the difference. That echoes earlier coverage of the same survey, which found AI-assisted hustlers nearly doubling the monthly income of nonusers.

Side Hustle School also has corporate backing. Aetna Better Health Kids is supporting it as part of its Pennsylvania community investments, noting that Side Hustle School: Family Edition works with 30 families a year to build viable businesses through training, coaching, and community showcases. The program's presenting sponsors are Eric and Patrice Pettis, GFT, and JPL Agency, according to Harrisburg University.

Applications for the first cohort are open now, and the university says space is limited. Families do not need to arrive with a business plan or any previous experience. In Jayamohan's words, they only need curiosity, commitment, and a willingness to try.

Harrisburg University announced Side Hustle School: Family Edition on Sept. 22, and Black Enterprise reported on the Network Solutions survey of AI-assisted side hustlers.