
President's Innovation Challenge
The Challenge
The President’s Innovation Challenge is a multidisciplinary team competition encouraging social and business entrepreneurship to help solve major problems of our day in Southern Nevada and beyond.
Students form teams to invent a solution. Maybe teams identify a significant social issue to solve; or launch the development of a new business or nonprofit that can take root and thrive; or invent an app that fosters a sustainable improvement in the socioeconomic factors that drive or hinder this city; or maybe they come up with a brilliant idea for an expansion of the arts to achieve a greater benefit for everyone, residents and visitors alike.
During the 2022-23 competition, powered by Honeywell, teams will present their solutions to chart the course to a more sustainable future.
The challenge is what we offer. The idea is up to our students – one that could win them a significant cash prize and even a life-changing path for their future.
2nd Annual President's Innovation Challenge Livestream
Upcoming Events
2nd Annual President’s Innovation Challenge
The Question
How will you make your impact? The 2nd annual President’s Innovation Challenge presents UNLV student teams with the opportunity to chart the course to a more sustainable future. This interdisciplinary challenge provides the opportunity to define how you can apply your knowledge, expertise, and the Rebel innovative spirit to help solve a sustainability challenge. Your team solution is not limited to science and engineering: imagine a new communication platform to raise awareness of carbon impact; a way to address clean water needs in underdeveloped communities; a new process to address a very carbon impact in healthcare; or a game-based learning product to engage and educate children on the topic of sustainability. The future is yours, both literally and figuratively.
Competition Details
The President’s Innovation Challenge calls on UNLV undergraduate and graduate students to work together and solve the problems of our day. During the fall semester, teams are formed, students gain knowledge they need to be successful in the competition, and proposals are submitted. The most competitive proposals move to the round of the competition in the spring, and final solutions are presented to a panel of judges at the President’s Innovation Challenge event. Winning teams will receive cash prizes from a pool of $50,000, including a grand prize of $25,000.
Interested?
Complete the President’s Innovation Challenge interest form by Nov. 21, 2022 and join us for an information session on Nov. 3 to learn more about the competition! Please RSVP at least 24 hours in advance.
Questions?
2022-23 President's Innovation Challenge Team Profiles
Competitor Information
Competition Details
You and a team of fellow students will develop an innovative solution and vie for the opportunity to win prize money to make your idea a reality. Teams of three to five students must include at least one undergraduate and one graduate student from at least three different majors or disciplines (e.g., arts, engineering, and business). This helps to ensure that teams have different types of academic, professional, and scholarly expertise and can produce an innovative solution, from concept to execution.
As always, teams are best, simply due to the effectiveness of teams in solving major problems. If you don’t have a team, though, that’s fine! We will help you build a team. And we want all Rebels — all majors, all disciplines, and all backgrounds — to participate.
During the fall semester, you will form your team, attend technical assistance workshops to gain the knowledge you need to be successful, and submit a competition proposal. The most competitive proposals will be selected to move forward to the next round of the competition in the spring, during which your team will build and submit your final solution to the problem statement. You’ll present your plans at the spring showcase to a panel of judges, and final prizes will be announced.
Prizes
Winning teams will receive cash prizes from a prize pool of $50,000, including a grand prize of $25,000! To support winning teams in transforming their proposals into reality, prize packages for winners will include a place in the UNLV Incubator cohort and support from mentors in their field.
Students who advance to the final round will receive tuition for a 3-credit spring semester class and a UNLV parking pass in the form of a scholarship.
Please note: You must have a current FAFSA form or the Alternate Need Determination Form on file. If you owe money for current or prior terms, the funds will be applied towards that balance. Disbursement of the scholarship can take between 4-6 weeks.
All participating teams will receive a sustain and inspire package with gift cards, in-kind products and services, 24/7 access to the UNLV Incubator and the UNLV Gateway Graduate Commons, and resources to help launch their innovation and prepare their submission.
Timeline
- Nov. 3: Are you up for the challenge but want more information before committing? Join us for the President's Innovation Challenge Information Session to get all of the details and learn more about the challenge. Please RSVP at least 24 hours in advance.
- Nov. 21: Submit interest form.
- Nov. 21: Join us for the President's Innovation Challenge Social. We’ll also be hosting an Innovative Thinking & Problem-Solving Workshop and Idea Incubation Workshop.
- Dec. 9: Submit team registration form. Please note that teams must consist of three to five people in at least three different disciplines/majors, with at least one undergraduate and one graduate student on each team. Please be prepared to provide the following information when registering your team:
- Team members' first and last name
- Team members' RebelMail address
- Team members' department
- Team name
- Team mantra
- Team faculty advisor/mentor (if you don't have one, just let us know and we'll help you find one)
- Dec. 12: Participants who don’t have a team will be paired.
- Jan. 3: Submit competition proposal.
- Jan. 10: Next round winners announced
- Week of Jan.16: Finalist team consultations
Interested?
Learn more about the competition and complete the President’s Innovation Challenge interest form by Nov. 21, 2022.
Questions?

Recaps from Past President's Innovation Challenge Events
2021-22
WINNING TEAMS
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Shaimaa Abdelhaleem, Geoscience Ph.D.
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G Liu, Quantitative Finance M.S.
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Jacob Gross, Accounting BSBA
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Jonathan Kim, MBA and Quantitative Finance M.S.
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Andres Rodriguez Lombeida, Public Affairs Ph.D.
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Alejandro Rodriguez Lombeida, Master of Business Administration (MBA)
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Anyelina Rodriguez Lombeida, Pre-Business (Economics)
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Osarodion Victory Igbinobaro, Master of Architecture
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Richard Bergstrom, Entrepreneurship BSBA
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Godson Ebenezer Adjovu, Civil and Environmental Engineering Ph.D.
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Glenn Nowak, Hospitality Administration Ph.D.






