Penfield Library will host its first Grand Challenges Makeathon in February, and seeks students to demonstrate -- for a chance to earn prizes -- their creativity by working collaboratively for solutions to the current "Grand Challenge: Fresh Water for All."
The Makeathon kickoff will take place at 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, in the library's Classroom 215. Teams will work on their projects at their own pace throughout the weekend. All SUNY Oswego students are encouraged to participate, according to Sharona Ginsberg, Penfield's learning technologies librarian.
Project presentations will begin at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, in Marano Campus Center auditorium. The event is free and open to the public.
Prizes, in Amazon gift cards, are $250 for the winning team and $50 for two runners-up. The awards are made possible by a Grand Challenges mini-grant.
Based on the concept of a hackathon, a team-based event of intensive creative problem solving, the Makethon wants projects to be interdisciplinary and creative, but does not limit them to high-tech or coding-based solutions. Possibilities for Makeathon would include product prototypes, short films, games, apps/software, websites, commercials, videos for public service announcements, and podcast or radio show-style audio recordings, among others.
Judges will evaluate projects based on creativity, use of research/data, community impact, business and promotional considerations, interdisciplinary collaboration and feasibility.
It's not necessary for students to come to the Makeathon with a project or team prepared, Ginsberg said.
For more information and to sign up, visit the Makeathon guide or email sharona.ginsberg@oswego.edu.