Be the trusted adult.
The kids most likely to enter are the ones a counselor, a librarian, a coach, a neighbor, or a parent forwarded the link to. You don’t need to run a program. You just need to be the person who said “you should do this.”
Pick one of the ways below. All of them help.
Ways to champion
Send the link to a kid who notices problems and asks good questions.
A simple ‘you should try this’ can be the spark.
A 45-minute guide to take a roomful of kids from idea to submission.
One or two students who’ll spread the Challenge through their own networks.
If you’re a teacher, you also have your own track.
The Teacher Challenge runs parallel to the student track — same prompt, same rubric, same prize structure. You can champion students and submit your own idea.
Share it
The lowest-cost way to help. Send the link to a kid you think should try this, forward it to a colleague, post it in a parent newsletter, drop it in a club chat. The kids we most want to reach often hear about this kind of thing through one trusted adult — that’s you.
Nominate a student
Especially if you know a kid with real perseverance who doesn’t usually get opportunities like this. We’ll send them (and you) a short note explaining how to enter.
If a parent or guardian asks…
Short, honest answers you can give on the spot — or hand them this list.
Yes. The North Carolina Idea Challenge is convened by Exponential Scholars, a North Carolina nonprofit. Cash prizes are real and paid out via check or ACH to a parent or guardian co-signer (for students) or directly to the entrant (for teachers). Above $600, the IRS requires a 1099 — we handle the paperwork.
No. The AI tools ask questions, give honest notes, and help organize thoughts — but the final submission is a 1–2 minute video of the kid on camera, in their own words. The rubric explicitly does not reward polish, vocabulary, or adult-sounding phrasing.
We collect a nickname, age, and community — never a full name, school, or precise location. No third-party tracking, no ads, no data selling. A parent email is collected only if the kid finalizes their entry.
Three business days. Every submission gets a yes-or-no review within 3 business days. Submit any day between June 15 and October 15, 2026 — no cohort to wait for.
Because no other NC competition serves this age range. NC Youth Institute, UNCW YEPex, and YES Surry are all high-school-only. Middle schoolers in NC currently have no statewide idea contest. We're filling that gap on purpose.
Host a 45-minute session
One class period, one club meeting, or one library afternoon is enough to get a roomful of students from “I don’t have an idea” to a recorded video submission. Here’s the run-of-show.
Read aloud: 'What's your idea to help your community?' Take three minutes for kids to write down anything that bugs them about their school, neighborhood, or town. No judging. Anything counts.
Each kid opens /spark on a Chromebook or phone. Ask one question, see what Spark sends back. Don't move on until they answer Spark's follow-up at least once.
Each kid opens /forge and fills out the five fields — Problem, People, Plan, Proof, Heart. Save v1. Read the notes Forge sends back. Don't worry about polish.
Each kid opens /submit, hits Enable Camera, records a 1–2 minute video. Phones are fine — there's an upload fallback if the school blocks browser camera.
Each kid hits Submit. Done. They walk out with a poster (Make), a video, and a real entry.
- One device per kid (Chromebook, tablet, or phone)
- Wi-Fi
- A relatively quiet space for recording (one corner is enough)
- You. That’s it.
A printable 1-pager
For your bulletin board, a staff meeting, or a parent night. Plain language, big type, fits one page.
Find ambassadors
One or two students in a school, club, or neighborhood can do more for reach than any newsletter blast. An ambassador is a student who shares the Challenge with friends and classmates, runs a small workshop with people they already know, and helps make sure students who’d otherwise hear about this from no one hear about it from someone they trust.
Especially good fits: NCSSM students, Carolina Covenant scholars, 4-H club leaders, Boys & Girls Club members, student-government leaders, library teen advisors. Ambassadors get co-branded materials and recognition on the Winners page.
Know a student who could do this? Email hello@exponentialscholars.org with their first name and community.
Convene with us
The Idea Challenge is convened by Exponential Scholars with educators and youth partners across North Carolina. We’re looking for organizations that can help us reach students we wouldn’t otherwise — especially 4-H clubs and NC State Extension, Boys & Girls Clubs, YMCAs, Communities In Schools, libraries, and college access programs (TRIO, GEAR UP, College Advising Corps).
Email hello@exponentialscholars.org with a sentence about your community and how you’d want to plug in. We respond to every one.