Students Combine Technology, Policy for Public Service Solutions
Rapid Innovation DriveOhio team members (from left) Megan McCarthy, Vanessa Carey and Charles Van Leuven (not pictured: Andrew Pierce) helped the Ohio Department of Transportation examine equity in electric vehicle advancements.
It doesn’t take long before students in the Rapid Innovation for Public Impact course learn what constitutes a “wicked problem.”
The course, offered through the Battelle Center for Science, Engineering and Public Policy at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs, creates interdisciplinary teams of students to combine science and technology with policy to examine complex government or nonprofit agency challenges — and develop tangible solutions.
Sponsor a Rapid Innovation Project
If you and your organization are looking for a fresh perspective on a challenge facing your industry, contact Ethan Rivera to learn how you can get answers and participate in the Rapid Innovation course.
“The Rapid Innovation course helps students tackle wicked problems from an interdisciplinary point of view. We want students to understand that technology alone cannot solve the world’s biggest challenges,” said Ethan Rivera, student programming lead and co-instructor for the Rapid Innovation course. Each of the challenges has technical aspects, including data analysis and machine learning, that must be informed by social, economics, business and arts backgrounds and more.
The Fight Against Human Trafficking
Students in another Rapid Innovation for Public Impact project devised a way to identify Appalachian Ohio populations that could be vulnerable to human trafficking. Now, researchers and community leaders are examining ways to implement that framework at the state level so agencies can more effectively direct resources and prevention efforts.
Collaborating with all the parties involved rather than simply talking about the problem, she said, made the project more practical, and the matrices and techniques provided in the class helped with the complexity of solution development.
“Working with Rich and Director Preeti Choudhary at the Ohio Department of Transportation the past few years has been an incredible experience for the students,” Rivera said. “Their commitment to our teams really helps the students become invested in the challenges they are working to solve. Their involvement has helped realize the potential of this course.”
Learn more about the Rapid Innovation for Public Impact course.