Invention Challenge Recap
Each year, Bright Spark hosts the Invention Challenge, a 30-day competition for students from 4th grade to college.
Just two weeks after our 2019 awards program, where we recognized finalists and winners from the Chattanooga and Atlanta area, we’re taking a moment to recap the success of this year’s challenge. The numbers speak for themselves!
The Invention Challenge is a great opportunity for educators looking for innovative ways to spark creative confidence, empathy, and the power of design thinking in their students’ lives. Over thirty days, students are tasked with creating a new service or product that solves an existing problem. Each team then creates 90-second pitch videos that share the problem identified, the ideation process, the solution (prototype), how the user will engage/use your solution, and its impact.
To help us select the finalists from 41 submissions, we uploaded each team's pitch videos to YouTube and asked the public to vote by "liking" their favorites. After 2,830 votes and 15,000+ total views, our panel of judges selected the winners, from best overall to best prototype. Watch the recorded live stream.
We owe our success with this year’s challenge to our student inventors, their educators, parents, administrators, and to our judging panel! A special thank you to the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce for their partnership and for presenting the Spirit of Innovation Young Innovator Award. Thank you for helping us as we continue to build a community of Bright Sparkers!
The Winners
Best Overall Elementary - Westwood Elementary School | Neon Book Light
Best Overall Middle - River Trail Middle School | Rain Gutter for Electricity & Fresh Water
Best Overall High - Johns Creek High School | Independence 1000
Best Originality - Westwood Elementary School | Connect-A-Pillow
Best Prototype - Johns Creek High School | Life Protector
Young Innovator Award - East Lake Academy of Fine Arts | Imperium
The Judges
Allison Reedy Wolfe - theCO / TN Driving Innovation
Debra Dubow - Dubow Consulting
Josh Ekandem - Intel
Lynn Chesnutt - Tennessee Small Business Development Centers
Tim Walsh - Western Electric