Lauren Innovations and Kent State Tuscarawas Announce Call for Participants for New ‘Safety App Challenge’
Area high school, college students can win scholarships, cash prizes for creative mobile app ideas
Lauren Innovations and Kent State University at Tuscarawas announce a call for participants for the ‘Safety App Challenge,’ a new local competition that offers area students scholarships and cash prizes for creative mobile app ideas related to safety.
Open to juniors and seniors from any Tuscarawas County high school as well as registered Kent State Tuscarawas students, interested participants submit conceptual ideas that could be developed into a potential application for use on mobile devices. All ideas must be safety-related, or in some way, improve safety for the potential app user.
Ideas will be reviewed by an acceptance committee and a select few will be chosen. If selected, participants will actually design and develop their app concept, with the goal of getting it into a well-known app store.
“The idea for the ‘Safety App Challenge’ – which we are going to co-host annually – came to fruition because we wanted to create a friendly and fun event for local students that would encourage innovation through the creative use of technology,” said Lauren Innovations President Jim Hummel. “There are various components to the app competition that really make it great. It encourages community involvement and networking, mentoring and continuing education, idea generation and creativity, and, of course, the opportunity to win a scholarship or cash and develop a new and tangible innovation that has the potential to improve the safety of our society.”
Lauren Innovations and Kent State Tuscarawas staff will host a series of workshops, covering a variety of topics, at the state-of-the-art Tolloty Technology Incubator in New Philadelphia to assist students throughout the app development process. All needed hardware and software will be provided by Lauren Innovations and Kent State Tuscarawas.
Ideas for the ‘Safety App Challenge’ must be submitted by Sept. 25, 2015. An application form is available on the challenge website at: www.thesafetyappchallenge.com. Chosen participants will be announced Oct. 2, 2015.
App development will conclude on Jan. 4, 2016, and the competition will culminate with an awards ceremony on Jan. 23, 2016. Awards will be given for first, second and third place winners as outlined below.
- First place: A $2,500 scholarship to Kent State Tuscarawas (from Kent State Tuscarawas) and the option of either a $5,000 scholarship (to a college/university of choice) or $2,500 cash (from Lauren Innovations).
- Second place: A $1,500 scholarship to Kent State Tuscarawas (from Kent State Tuscarawas) and the option of either a $3,000 scholarship (to a college/university of choice) or $1,500 cash (from Lauren Innovations).
- Third place: A $1,000 scholarship to Kent State Tuscarawas (from Kent State Tuscarawas) and the option of either a $2,000 scholarship (to a college/university of choice) or $1,000 cash (from Lauren Innovations).
“We are excited to partner with Lauren Innovations for the app challenge,” said Dr. Brad Bielski, dean and chief administrative officer of Kent State Tuscarawas. “This competition enables students to combine imagination, computer and problem solving skills to focus on designing and developing a meaningful project that will have beneficial results. It also enriches their educational experience, whether the student is a high school or college student.”
For more details on the Safety App Challenge, visit: www.thesafetyappchallenge.com
About Lauren Innovations
Lauren Innovations is dedicated to the development and enhancement of technologies and services that contribute to a safer and more secure society. Headquartered in New Philadelphia, Ohio, Lauren Innovations is a subsidiary of Lauren International and is backed by 50 years of experience and expertise. The company’s flagship, cloud-based product family, NaviGate, is designed to increase operational and data efficiency – helping organizations plan for the unexpected, meet compliance regulations, make better decisions and access critical information more efficiently. For more information, visit www.LaurenInnovations.com or call 866-861-7400.
About Kent State Tuscarawas
Located on 180 acres in New Philadelphia, Kent State Tuscarawas boasts a vibrant and friendly atmosphere with an enrollment of more than 2300 students served through credit programming and another 4500 individuals served through non-credit courses offered by the Office of Business and Community Services. Students can complete 11 bachelor's and 17 associate degrees, as well as certificate programs. A few of the largest majors include nursing; business; computer design, animation and game design; and veterinary technology, which is one of only seven AVMA accredited programs in Ohio. For more information, visit www.kent.edu/tusc or call 330-339-3391.