| Challenge | Description |
|---|---|
| Local Coffee, Smarter Connections: Using AI to Support Ohio Coffee Shops | Exploring how emerging technology could strengthen connections between local businesses and their communities, Theorose Dzineku, Julian Leff, and Jocelyn Sampson-Dickerson developed the concept for an AI-powered platform connecting Ohio coffee shops with people looking for distinctive, locally rooted coffee experiences. The team investigated how an easy-to-use web application could help smaller coffee businesses reach new audiences while making discovery more engaging for customers. Their concept paired AI-assisted recommendations with an emoji-based rating system intended to offer a simple, approachable alternative to traditional written reviews. The team researched potential platforms and local coffee businesses before developing a visual prototype demonstrating how the service could ultimately function. |
| Healthcare Within Reach: Connecting Students with Campus Health Services | Working around the needs of ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ’s DeWeese Health Center, Gemma, Julian, Jacob, Harsha, Jocelyn, and DeAnte explored how the university could make campus healthcare services more accessible and visible to students. The team began by researching existing services and developing a student survey, while also preparing to engage directly with DeWeese staff about barriers and opportunities. Their work considered several dimensions of accessibility—including awareness, communication, and financial concerns—and proposed mechanisms such as a suggestion box to better understand student needs. The team’s broader goal was to identify priorities with Health Center staff and translate those findings into an actionable plan for improving how students discover and access available healthcare resources. |
| Beyond Boundaries: Expanding Access to Interdisciplinary Spaces | Working within the Design Innovation Ecosystem, Hayden Davis, Elle Smith, Pann Prechacheawat, and Delonte Goodman examined how students could more easily access specialized spaces, equipment, expertise, and learning opportunities beyond their own academic disciplines. Using the Reactor Makerspace and other DI Nodes as examples, the team investigated barriers including limited awareness, training requirements, scheduling, policies, and uncertainty about how to get involved. Their work culminated in the development of an Interdisciplinary Resource Access Summit, bringing together representatives from shared campus spaces to identify barriers and collaboratively generate solutions. The team envisioned stronger communication, training, mentorship, and cross-departmental partnerships as ways to make ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ’s distributed resources more accessible to students regardless of major. |
| May 4 for a New Generation: Reimagining Student Engagement with History | Focusing on the May 4 Visitors Center and ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ’s May 4 history, Joy Ogunpolu, Nadia Modjrian, and Shriya Sanjana Sunkara explored how contemporary students might develop a deeper connection to an event that occurred decades before they were born. The team researched the history through archival newspapers and visits to the Visitors Center while investigating how storytelling, personalization, interactivity, and emerging technology could make historical interpretation more meaningful to today’s students. Ideas ranged from immersive VR experiences and discipline-specific educational activities to incentives and a redesigned digital interpretation of the iconic May 4 yellow wall. The team also developed a campus-wide survey to evaluate student interest and guide recommendations for making May 4 history more accessible, relevant, and engaging to new generations. |
| Mend, Make, Repeat: Making Sustainable Hobbies More Accessible | Partnering with Fix-It Kent, Elle Smith, Pann Prechacheawat, Olivia Diemert, and Alessandra DiPiazza explored how everyday hobbies and creative skills could become more affordable, accessible, and sustainable for ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ students. After surveying students and researching free and low-cost campus resources, the team focused its first intervention on creative mending—giving students practical skills to repair and personalize clothing rather than discard it. They developed a hands-on learning experience supported by reusable sewing kits, written and video tutorials, and custom components produced with DI Hub fabrication technologies. The concept was designed not simply to teach sewing, but to create a repeatable model through which students could gain new skills, reduce waste, and feel empowered to make and repair things themselves. |
0
0
