View full sizeMichelle Gabel/The Post-StandardLeft to right, Project See participants Tyler Seeley, 16, of Liverpool; Corey Chavis, 16, of Syracuse, and Jessica Kuntz, 14, of Ithaca, work on a brain teaser during lunch time Thursday.

Local high school students took a break from summer vacation to learn about what it takes to become an entrepreneur.

The students participated in a week-long program to learn the basics of starting and running a business. The program, Student Entrepreneurial Experience, began Monday at the South Side Innovation Center, 2610 South Salina St.

“Some of them must’ve been really nervous because they came at 8 (a.m.),” said Margaret Butler, Project SEE’s program director, on the students’ first day.

Students met from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, receiving class instruction, mentoring and guest lectures by young entrepreneurs. They also had homework every night, beginning with an 87-page reading Monday night.

It’s the first year that SSIC and Syracuse University’s Martin J. Whitman School of Management have held the program. It was restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Students filled out an application which included a recommendation from a guidance counselor or teacher, and a 200-word essay on why the program would be beneficial to them.

Out of 25 students who applied, 20 were accepted and divided into four teams of five. The teams were divided based on school, and the students’ strengths and weaknesses in an attempt to create equally balanced teams.