2025 Changemaker Challenge Winners Receive Scholarships
EVANSVILLE, IND. (01/27/2025) High school students throughout the Tri-State and beyond were awarded significant scholarships on Saturday at the University of Evansville’s 11th annual High School Changemaker Challenge, made possible by Toyota Indiana.
The challenge is designed to motivate young people to take a leading role in identifying and solving challenges in the world through innovation and creativity.
UE has committed more than $1 million in scholarships to winners of this competition since its inception. Those who choose UE as their college destination will each receive four-year scholarships as listed below:
First Place / STEMpire: Empowering Young Women in STEM
Team member: Norah Ahmed; Evansville Day School, Evansville, Indiana
STEMpire: Empowering Young Women in STEM is a youth-led nonprofit that aims to break down barriers women face in joining STEM fields. This initiative provides resources, education, and assistance for high school girls, especially women from underserved communities like the Evansville Promise Neighborhood, and we are exploring doing so through the first STEMpire Conference in summer 2025 and the STEMpire Task Force.
Second Place / Boomerang Learning
Team members: Kris Lau, Abdul-Aleem Mohammed, Parth Patel; Signature School, Evansville, Indiana
Boomerang Learning is a learning program that will help students who have had trouble catching up to Indiana standards post-COVID and to help students who are falling behind their peers.
Third Place / Sprouts: Rooted in Education
Team members: Olivia Cooper; North High School, Evansville, Indiana
Sponsored gardens would be constructed at EVSC elementary schools (with summer school options). The gardens will serve to provide fresh food to nearby food pantries and mitigate local climate change.
On Friday, January 24, a panel of judges heard pitches from the top 20 teams and individual students who had been invited to the in-person competition. From those top 20, six ideas were then chosen for the championship round that took place on Saturday, January 25. During that event, judges awarded first, second, and third place. Additionally, a surprise $10,000 UE scholarship was given to each of the runners up.
Runners up:
Clear Vision
Team members: Evan Walker, Charles March-Gibson; Zionsville Community High School, Zionsville, Indiana
Clear Vision will help neighborhoods achieve safer and more accessible communities by providing durable, reflective address plaques applied directly to the curb for clear and uniform home visibility.
Freedom Boots
Team members: Keegan Griepenstroh, Elias Hager, Isaac Hager; North High School, Evansville, Indiana
Freedom Boots are advanced motorized leg braces powered by electrical stimulation, designed to deliver an immersive experience when paired with a VR headset-all at an affordable price.
PoliTech
Team members: Jonathan Baker, Tyoshi Chikayama-Jackson; Signature School, Evansville, Indiana
PoliTech is an innovative platform that bridges the gap between politicians and their voters through AI technology and social media integration, while ensuring credibility through verified politician accounts and transparent engagement metrics. The platform offers features like PoliAI providing faster information for voters, PoliFeed for sharing verified updates and engaging with followers, and a comprehensive dashboard for politicians to manage their online presence and track authentic engagement metrics.
To learn more about High School Changemaker Challenge please visit https://www.evansville.edu/
