No matter who you are–student, working professional, or somewhere in between–you can make a difference in solving Charlotte’s upward mobility epidemic.
#Fix50 Hackathon: Fix 50 Out of 50 Through Fintech
When John F. Kennedy took us to the moon, it wasn’t to satisfy our curiosity for the unknown, it was to beat the Soviets into space. It was a matter of national security, it was a function of necessity. Bill Gates challenged innovators in a similar fashion to disrupt the way Africa approached sanitation leading to foundational enhancements in human waste management and access to potable drinking water for billions of people living in Africa.
Charlotte is currently in a similar situation after recently being labeled dead last in upward mobility. Carolina Fintech Hub, on behalf of the region’s leading financial services and insurance institutions, is making a similar call-to-action for our region’s brightest innovative minds–fix 50 out of 50 through fintech.
Watch this video feature of the #Fix50 Hackathon courtesy of WBTV.
The Problem:
The city of Charlotte ranks dead last (50th out of 50) among America’s largest cities in Upward Mobility. This means that for a child born in poverty in Charlotte, it is harder to get out of poverty than any other large city in the United States (source: forcharlotte.org/). While our city leaders and business executives are doing all they can to tackle the problem, Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America, put it best, “upward mobility is everyone’s responsibility.”
So what are YOU doing about upward mobility?
The Challenge (#Fix50 Hackathon):
If you are passionate about making a difference and contributing to a solution that will change thousands of lives in your own community, join our mission. We are looking for bright minds with a willingness to impact change and leave a positive legacy.
Think BIG. YOU can make an IMPACT. Submit an idea even if you don’t know exactly how you would execute it. Sign up to be on a team if you have the technical ability but are waiting for the right idea. It might be an app, or it might not use any technology at all. Whatever your idea is, whatever your willingness looks like to contribute, we want to hear from YOU. It doesn’t matter if you’re a college student, a full-time employee, or just someone wanting to help, together the Carolina community will work as one to solve our region’s biggest problem–the income inequality between the “have” and “have-not”.
Read the Leading on Opportunity report to learn more about upward mobility in Charlotte.
The Timeline: **This timeline has since been extended and updated. Please see below**
Whether you are registering as a team or individual, make sure to complete the registration form below so we can contact you directly with updates and next steps. Once you’ve filled out the registration form below:
If submitting as a team…
We will send the final team submission form to the email address you used when registering (see form below). You have until November 15th to virtually submit your idea and proof of concept. In order for a submission to be valid, it must include:
- A written explanation of your proposal (up to 500 words) summarizing what your idea is and what impact it will have.
- A link to a video either demonstrating your product, app, technology, or idea in action.
If submitting as an individual…
You have until November 1st to submit your intent to participate via the registration form below. From there, we will facilitate a match-making process and pair you with other interested individuals who can best contribute towards collective success. Once you’ve formed your team, you will need to submit your idea and proof of concept by November 15th (see above).
EXTENSION — Individuals now have until Nov 13th to register, Teams have until Nov 15th to submit their final proposal.
Updated Timeline
- Nov 11 — (FOR INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATIONS ONLY) First round of placement: Individual sign-ups will begin being paired virtually onto teams
- Nov 13 — (FOR INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATIONS ONLY) Final round of placement: Last day to register as an individual and final individual placements
- Nov 15 — Last day to submit your #Fix50 proposal
- EVENT: Nov 19 — Top five finalists present and two teams advance to the finals. Free event open to the public. Click here to learn more and register. (LINK)
- EVENT: Nov 21 — Finals, champion announced, $10,000 awarded
Sample Submission Idea:
If you’re struggling to come up with an idea, don’t sweat it. Start by learning more about the problem as upward mobility can be bucketed into several different categories. Read up on some of the categorizations and the ideas will start flowing!
Example — One of the biggest barriers to education for young children is cost. In order to encourage expecting parents to begin saving for their child’s impending education costs, you could propose a “round-up” savings app that allocates each transaction’s savings into an account dedicated for early-childhood education expenses. In your submission, you would explain the logic behind the savings methodology, walk through how the app would work, and convince us that your proposal would make a positive impact on upward mobility.
(Note: Your solution does NOT need to be an app, we just used an app for this example)
The Reward:
The top finalists will have an opportunity to present their idea at the Venture135 Conference on November 21st. The winner will go home with a check for $10,000 along with access to the region’s top mentors and influencers to put towards executing their idea.
Think you have what it takes? Register below.
NOTE: In order for your application to be considered, you must complete the following two-step process.
1) Fill out the basic registration form below. If you are registering as an individual, we will use the information you’ve provided to match you with a team before moving on to step #2.
2) Submit your final proposal by Nov 15th here.
REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED. You can still submit your #Fix50 team proposal before Friday.
