Every year, The Ron Brown – Ruth & Norman Rales Leaders Network hosts a strategy competition where we invite Scholars and Captains to test their skills in problem solving techniques of human-centered design. In this guided competition, they learn the principles of design thinking and apply them to a case involving the digital divide.
This year, teams dove into the challenge of addressing the digital divide in rural Alabama, applying human-centered design principles to develop innovative solutions.
Congratulations to our Leaders Network Scholars and Captains for their outstanding performance in the Winter Strategy Competition!
Watch the video to see their presentation.
1st Place Winners, Next Gen Tech Labs:
- Olivia Woods, Yale 26 (Team Captain)
- Miliani Smith, Drexel ’26
- Elishevlyne Eliason, Yale ’25
- Florence Onyiuke, Penn’ 26
Runner-Up Team, Quick Data:
- Okezie Eze, Princeton ’25 (Team Captain)
- Serkute Abebe, Columbia ’25
- David Kwabi-Addo, MIT ’25
- Zoe Mercado, Wash U ’24
Special thanks to our case designer, Casandra Woodall RBS ’06 Operations Strategist at Appian and to our competition judges: Cindy Joseph, CEO of The Cee Suite, Robert Kabera RBS ’07, Founder of Sync Energy, Moisés Padilla, Executive Director of CMU Rales Fellows Program, and Amy Burkett, Vice Provost for Education at Carnegie Mellon University
