Students develop real-world solutions at CentennialX

Centennial School District is earning high praise for its summer innovation challenge – CentennialX. Both Upper Dublin and Wissahickon school districts have also participated in the event, which gives students an opportunity to learn transferable skills under the guidance of teachers and corporate mentors. As part of the experience, students pair up with industry mentors/funders to develop ideas for new products that solve real-world problems. They then present the solutions at a daylong conference. Students develop skills in market research, prototyping, product testing/evaluation, protection of intellectual property and more as they brainstorm and develop their ideas. As an added bonus, they are paid $1,500 for six weeks of work. Some past projects included glow-in-the-dark socks for cyclists and informational kits to inform parents and children about clinical trials. Corporate partners have included Eli Lilly and Company, The Branta Group, LLC, and PRA Health Sciences.

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