2023 Grand Challenge Competition Recap: Access to Meaningful Work

Honors ingenuity, creativity, and collaboration were center stage as three teams of finalists pitched their big ideas during the 2023 Judy Genshaft Honors College Grand Challenge. Held on Tuesday, Nov. 7, in the Judy Genshaft Honors College building on the University of South Florida’s (USF) Tampa campus, the contest challenged students to leverage the ideas of social entrepreneurship to address one or more barriers preventing employment for individuals impacted by disability.

The winning proposal, ARThritis, will help people dealing with the symptoms of arthritis by creating work opportunities in creative fields – opportunities that could provide employment and therapeutic benefits. 

Sponsored by the Richard and Jule Salem Scholars’ Fund for Disability, the Judy Genshaft Honors College Grand Challenge is an annual competition that challenges Honors students to work together to create real, feasible solutions to problems facing people in the disability community. 

“It is wonderful to see how creative and passionate our students are in proposing solutions to problems faced by the disability community. Our Honors students continue to strive to better the USF and Tampa Bay community through their ingenuity. We’re very grateful to Richard and Jule Salem for making this annual challenge possible!” – Dean Charles Adams  

Students from around the college formed interdisciplinary groups of three to four to research the barriers preventing employment, and then worked together to create a proposal for a program, model, or concept that can be feasibly implemented within the local community using existing resources and minimal funding. The teams with the top proposals met for a final pitch competition, presenting their ideas to a panel of judges in the Honors College building.

2023 GRAND CHALLENGE FINALISTS

D∞ABLE 
Proposed by Nhi Phuong Do, Quynh Nhat Nguyen, Duy Anh Nguyen, & Dat Trong Tran.

The team outlined the creation of a job board designed specifically for individuals with disabilities. Dooable aims to bridge the employment gap by providing inclusive job opportunities, user-friendly features, and essential support for both job seekers and recruiters.  

Bridging the Opportunity Gap Among the Deaf Community 
Proposed by Sudhiksha Maramraju, Adrianna Soto, Teresa Luu, & Caitlin Gaulteau.

The team focused on addressing the root cause of unemployment among the deaf community in Tampa. Students suggested amending the lack of knowledge regarding available employment opportunities through a job fair. The initiative aligns with broader efforts to advance equality and social justice, ensuring that every individual, regardless of their abilities, has the opportunity to reach their full potential and participate fully in the workforce and society at large. 

ARThritis  
Proposed by Reaghan Ard, Kiley Barton, Maria Lares, & Adreeja Mukherjee.

The team focused on the creation of an organization, and future non-profit, to combat the lack of employment opportunities for people suffering from arthritis. ARThritis plans to create career opportunities for sufferers of arthritis to make money via creative pursuits.  

BRINGING IDEAS TO LIFE

The Grand Challenge was judged by:

• Kyle Romano, an alumnus of the Honors College and a disability expert 
• Jon Dengler, CEO of WellBuilt Cities, a local non-profit organization in Tampa 
• Dr. Ulluminair Salim, full-time faculty of the Judy Genshaft Honors College  

Faced with the monumental task of deciding which team would win the competition, the panel of judges selected ARThritis, citing the project’s feasibility, connection to current resources, and the diverse skillset of the team.   

During the Spring 2024 semester, the ARThritis team will work as interns with WellBuilt Cities to implement their plan within the local community. Additionally, the judges were so impressed with the other teams’ presentations, they encouraged them to work together and offered additional support to help make all three ideas a reality.  

“We want to congratulate all of the finalists,” said Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Lindy Davidson. “Their proposals showed creativity and investment in the well-being of our local community, we hope all three teams continue to work towards implementation of their ideas. We know that our Honors students are working to make positive changes in the world, and it is exciting to support them in their endeavors.” 

Students interested in learning more about the Grand Challenge or participating in next year’s event can visit our events page.