DeVry University Senior Project Showdown Winners Recognized for Creating Innovative Solutions with Real-World Applications

On August 20th, DeVry University congratulated the finalists and winning team of its third annual Senior Project Showdown, a national competition in which DeVry University undergraduates show off their senior projects and media portfolios, and the University’s Keller Graduate School of Management students present their capstone projects.

All undergraduate and graduate students in their final semester collaborate with their peers on projects that apply their educational knowledge to solve a real-world challenge in their fields of study.

The resulting portfolios and projects are evaluated by DeVry University faculty, alumni, staff and local employers as the students’ final graduation requirement.

“The Senior Project Showdown is an opportunity for our students to think ahead to their future careers and come up with ideas with real-world applications,” said Donna M. Loraine, Ph.D., chief academic officer/provost of DeVry University. “We’re impressed by the dedication our students put into developing this year’s innovative projects, and we want to congratulate the national finalists on this accomplishment and wish them continued success as they take the next step in their career journey.”

Background on the Project:
Since 2013, students have had the opportunity to compete against their peers from across the country in DeVry’s annual Senior Project Showdown. Each student team submitted a 60–90-second video and description of their project. The top projects were selected by a panel comprised of Microsoft, Cisco, Adobe and Hewlett-Packard representatives, as well as DeVry University faculty and staff, based on their innovation, real-world problem solving and creativity. Public voting on DeVry University’s Facebook® page narrowed the top 10 down to three winning teams.

The National Champions of the 2015 Senior Project Showdown are the Following:

First Place – Soapbox: A brand relaunch project for Catie’s Bubbles, a small business that produces and sells homemade artisan soaps and shaving products. This team provided new designs for the company’s logo, product labels, website, flyers, business card, and thank you cards. Additionally, the team designed 18 new labels for each of the company’s soap scents, using unique color schemes for easy recognition, and also created an instructional how-to video for the products and brand t-shirts.

-Participating Students Include: Alicia Valenzuela, Edgar Navarrete, Fabio Cordeiro and Paul Lacko
-Click to view the Soapbox Senior Project video entry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hv3ZR66Gk3U

Statement: The video—in a very short time—walked me through the products, the process for creating the designs they will use, and the results from the customer. Even the detail about the market research they did through Facebook was interesting as it is a reminder that Facebook and other social media technology is for more than cat videos and pictures of food.” – Adobe representative

Second Place – 47th Ward: Find your Services: On the website of Chicago’s 47th Ward, a page entitled “Find Your Services” allows residents to easily access information about services in their area, such as garbage pickup and city sweeping. This allows residents to be more aware of when and where their city services will be taking place.

-Participating Students Include: Stephanie Beltran, Michael Dubberke, Chi Lam, Alexis Fagaragan and Regis Jackson
-Click to view the 47th Ward Find your Services Senior Project video entry: https://youtu.be/jEHuACJuD2M

Statement: “I live in a small town in Maine, and I hope they will contact Ward 47 to find out how this was done. The problem was clearly stated (and very real). The solution was quite simple and seemingly effective.” – Adobe representative

Third Place – ^5 Helping Hands: A 3D printed prosthetic hand controlled by a wireless device called Myo Armband. The Myo Armband is placed on the forearm of the person using the prosthetic hand and reads the electrical signals from muscle movement in the human body. These electric signals are then transferred, via Bluetooth, to the computer software program in the prosthetic hand, which allows it to move in the correct way.

-Participating Students Include: Matthew Osbirn, Ronneece Gilmore, Angela Lucarelli and Saulo Solis
-Click to view the ^5 Helping Hands video entry: https://youtu.be/3m5pkVkM7vs

Statement: “Great concept with integration of low cost technology to expand access and enhance patient care. Good demonstration with proof of concept.” – Hewlett-Packard representative

The top student teams received cash awards ranging from $500–$2,500. First-place team members also received a one-year Adobe® Creative Cloud Membership.

To learn more about DeVry University’s Senior Project Showdown, visit devry.edu/seniorprojects.