Congratulations to our 2015 EMERGING ISSUES High School PRIZE FOR INNOVATION
Grand prize winner,
East Carteret High School!

East Carteret High School

Bye-Stander

Students are generally afraid to report bullying for fear of becoming a target. NoBullying.com states that 64% of bullying in school goes un­reported. We want to empower students to discreetly submit reports of bullying via Bye-Stander, a phone app we are designing. For students without phones, a corresponding website would be created. Students would have the ability to submit photos and videos along with their anon­ymous reports. The app would be compatible with all phone operating systems and interfaces. In order to encourage use of the app, we would hold informative assemblies for the faculty and students. All five members of our team are devoted to making our academic com­munity a safer place, and we bring to the table leadership, organiza­tional and computing skills, plus experience in budgeting and editing.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF THE FINALISTS IN THIS YEAR’S COMPETITION!

John A. Holmes High School

Campaign to Stop the Spread of the Aquatic plant Hydrilla in the Chowan River

Water quality in the Chowan River Basin is a major concern for citizens who depend on the river for their domestic water supply, commercial use, and recreation. The Chowan River was the site of a large-scale algae bloom in 1972, prompting the NC Division of Water Quality to identify the basin as “nutrient sensitive waters.” More recently, an invasive species of aquatic plant known as Hydrilla is spreading rapidly, threatening to choke off access to the waterway. Our objective is to raise awareness by posting videos, posters, brochures, and digital boat ramp signs. We are also placing compost barrels at boat ramps and designing a rake that will be used to remove Hydrilla from boats and trailers to prevent the plant from spreading to other waterways. We have also enlist­ed help from the community, government officials, students in various grades, and our mentor.

Penn Griffin School for the Arts

Student-to-Student Leadership Program

NOTE THE PENN GRIFFIN TEAM HAS VOLUNTARILY WITHDRAWN FROM COMPETITION

The Student-to-Student Leadership Program will serve the greater High Point community by providing leadership training and mentoring to “at-risk” students. Our participants will come from Kirkman Park Elementary School and Penn-Griffin Middle School. Students will be identified by data collection, in­cluding academic performance and disciplinary records. The program will offer eligible students the opportunity to meet regularly with student mentors to participate in literacy-driven discussions and team-building activities. It will provide basic academic skills enrichment, and consistent monitoring and support. We hope to intervene as early as possible so students leaving elementary school will be better prepared for the challeng­es of a rigorous course of study. We also hope that students who might not apply to Penn-Griffin High School, a nationally ranked academic/arts magnet, will be equipped and encouraged to do so. Our peer mentors will develop and implement lessons and maintain data for the program, thus helping them develop crucial leadership skills.

North Carolina School of Science and Math

Anti-Obesity Application

Obesity is a growing epidemic in the United States, but it can be countered with healthy lifestyles. Our product is a mobile app that utilizes a reward system to encourage healthy living. The app provides motivation and encouragement to users making good choices, and allows consumers to associate their healthy decisions with immediate positive feedback. The app allows users to set their preferences, creating a customized experience. Its learning software allows for further adaptation to each individual’s needs, making the experience unique. Our team brings together people with different backgrounds and different strengths, including experience in app programming, business, and marketing. Most importantly, we are dedicated to healthy lifestyles and are passionate about creating a product that can improve the way users live.

South Mecklenburg High School

Veggie Valet

As members of the IDEA Academy at South Mecklenburg High School, we plan to utilize a 25’ x 50’ greenhouse, which we built at our school last year, to give more community members access to fresh produce. The convenience of fast food, the use of GMOs and preservatives, and the distance many Charlotte residents have to travel to reach markets with fruits and vegetables has made healthy eating a greater challenge than ever. While we grow organic food for our school now, we would like to use Project Green­house to expand our outreach to other schools and surrounding neigh­borhoods. We are seeking funding to buy a flatbed truck we will call the Veggie Valet to transport free samples to other schools and the community. It is our hope that we will inspire generations both old and new to include more fresh produce in their diets.