Proposal Review: External organizations submit challenges through our platform – for example, a local business might ask for ideas to reduce waste in their packaging, or a tech startup might seek a fresh marketing strategy for teens. We welcome a wide range of problems (technical, creative, community-oriented).

Team Formation: Interested students sign up for the challenge. The Hub operates asynchronously like the rest of our school, so students from different locations can collaborate online. They communicate via video meetings, chat, and collaborative documents. The team is assigned an Ark Institute mentor and communicates with a member from the organization seeking a solution for clarifying questions as needed.

Innovation Process: Over a specified time-frame, student teams research the problem, brainstorm possible solutions, and develop a proposal or prototype. They might apply design thinking steps: understanding the problem deeply, ideating creative solutions, prototyping, and testing their ideas.

Presentation & Feedback: Teams present their proposed solutions to the partner organization (via a live presentation or a recorded pitch). This experience teaches students how to communicate ideas in a professional setting. The partner provides feedback and may even choose to implement some of the students’ suggestions. In past programs like this, students have brought real value to businesses (one museum implemented a tool-sharing system proposed by students to solve an organizational issue).

Outcomes: Students in the Problem-Solving Hub gain soft skills like teamwork and professional skills–dividing tasks to meeting deadlines and adapting after feedback–as well as problem-solving, and communication that employers find invaluable. They also build confidence by working on meaningful projects with tangible impact. For partners, it’s an opportunity to support education and discover innovative ideas. This hub positions our students as young consultants tackling tomorrow’s problems today, and it showcases the power of connecting education with real-world needs. Some partners may offer perks like site visits, small stipends, or internship opportunities to teams with outstanding solutions.​