The Florida Atlantic Wave Competition
NOW OPEN TO ALL STUDENTS!
An undergraduate and graduate applied research and entrepreneurial competition challenging students to submit and develop innovative ideas targeting societal problems.
In this competition, we provide $500 to 10-12 undergraduate and master's level students.
Out of the chosen projects, only ONE will win a monetary award at an end of year ceremony. The First Place Award is generously sponsored through the Dr. Eric H. Shaw Florida Atlantic Wave Excellence in Innovation Award Endowment Fund. For sponsorship opportunities please contact fauwave@fau.edu.
$2000
First Place
Teams are chosen based on (a) innovation and creativity, (b) significance of niche/problem addressed, (c) the practical ability to develop the project, and (d) marketability and GPA.
Community Engagement projects win $1,000 for first place.These projects solve a problem within the community as a collaborative effort and benefit the members of our community.
$1000
First place community engagement
2023-2024 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Emma Susi | S.P.E.A.C (Sensory Personalized EEG Assistive Communication) is an innovative assistive communication device revolutionizing how individuals facing communication challenges due to conditions like ALS and stroke interact with the world. Utilizing affordable EEG technology, S.P.E.A.C accurately translates brain signals into real-time communication, enabling users to express themselves effortlessly. | Dr. Eric H. Shaw – FAU Wave Excellence in Innovation Award: $2,000 |
| Alejandra Vega, Tyler Owen, Evan Cabrera, and Andrew Gates | KaBodali Footbridge: The KaBodali suspended footbridge, projected to span the Mkhomati River in the rural municipality of Nkhaba, Kingdom of Eswatini, will provide direct benefits to five communities: Kusulvkeni, Manyaweni, Kudlomo, and Hhehhe. The Bridge will enhance their access to essential resources, including education, healthcare, and economic opportunities. | Community Engagement Winner First Place: $1,000 |
| Jean Elysee Dorsainville, Stefania Volpe, and Midley Sylien | MicroBiome: The MicroBiome Portal is a social networking website designed for microbiology students. The website empowers students to explore and share microorganisms found in their experiments by contributing to a comprehensive user-generated online database. | Palm Beach College Track Winner: $1,000 |
2022-2023 Winners
Florida Atlantic Wave 22-23 Event Sponsor: TreMonti Consulting LLC.
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Rachel Kavalakatt | Carpal Tech 2.0: a biowearable device to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome paired with an app | First Place: $2,000 |
| Krystyna Medina | Nourished from Nature provides gardening education for K-12 students and establishes a sustainable county wide food network | Community Engagement Winner First Place: $1,000 |
| Palm Beach State College Track Winner: Androff Cesar | Mind Check South Florida, a community service program that empowers high school students with tools to live mindfully positive and organized lives | Palm Beach State College First Place: $1,000 |
View photos from the award ceremony here.
2021-2022 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Rachel Kavalakatt | CarpalWear: Development of Non-Invasive Wearable Biofeedback Device to Effectively treat Carpal Tunnel Syndrome | First Place: $2,000 |
| Shalakha Bonthu, Jose Delgado, Hibah Hussain, Joseph Lawless, Bilal Mutluguler, Matthew Pacheco, and Vineet Reddy | Engage Florida | Community Engagement: $1,000 |
2020-2021 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Paris Prince | SPod-Biodegradable Soap and Water Capsule | First Place: $1,500 |
| Aiden Natalie | Marine Connex - An app to fill the gap between marine consumers and marine professionals | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Arman Alexis | Utilizing Virtual Reality to Augment CT Scans | Third Place: $500 |
| Sandy Abdelmalak, Alexia Betances,
Christopher Cadenas, and Diane Garcia |
Florida Atlantic Keep Moving Student Organization | Community Engagement: $1000 |
2019-2020 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Paris Prince | SPod-Biodegradable Hand Sanitizing Capsule | First Place: $1,500 |
| Vassili Georgakopoulos | 40s Not Feelings-Adaptive Fishing Lure | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Alexandra DeCesare, Daniel Carvalho, and Robert Snyder | Drone Based Quantum Communication | Third Place: $500 |
| Alexander Hintze, Esther Mitchell, Samantha Robinson, Brandon Caniff, and Matthew Maracallo | The Eswatini Foot Bridge | Community Engagement |
2018-2019 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Giannina Duran | Owl Parking-Campus Parking Made Easy | First Place: $1,500 |
| Vassilios Georgakopoulos | Abrasion Resistant Nylon Polymer Fishing Line | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Taylor Leta, Ricardo Sanatan, and Jonathan Ortiz-Collazo | Assistive Speech Enhancer | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Alexis Base | Developing a Solution to Ocean Acidification | Third Place: $500 |
| Alejandro Carruyo and Brenda Lozada | Furthering Student Science Education and Mentorship | Community Engagement |
View photos from the award ceremony here.
2017-2018 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Evita Conway | Developing a model for mood disorder classification using eye movements | First Place: $1,500 |
| Devin Willis | Slidemap improves the accuracy of tumor cell classification and cancer diagnosis using deep learning | First Place: $1,500 |
| Vithulan Suthakaran | An artificial leaf that transforms carbon dioxide into oxygen via photosynthesis | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Stephen Hoover | Machine olfaction using deep learning artificial neural networks | Third Place: $500 |
| Natalia Perez and Sydney Yu | LEAP-Learning Enrichment Activity Pals | Community Engagement |
2016-2017 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Vithulan Suthakaran | SEA Skimmer: The Development of a Sustainable Environmental Accumulation Skimmer in Order to Extract Marine Pollution from a Variety of Geographical Locations | First Place: $1,500 |
| Alexis Base | Developing an Image Recognition and Motor Control Algorithm for Pterois Volitans’ Population in South Florida | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Ben Coleman | Transient-Image Density Evaluation System (TIDES) | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Pedro Flores | Algorithmic Music Composition | Third Place: $500 |
| Hannah Herbst | Protecting Civilians and Public Service Personnel Through an Early Identification and Warning System for Airborne Chemicals / SEIAC: A System for the Early Identification for Airborne Chemicals | Third Place: $500 |
To download a flier of the 2016-2017 winners, click here.
2015-2016 Winners
| Name | Project Title | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Evan Clark | Identification of the Role of SRSF1 in T Cell Activation and Functions Through the Analysis of High-Throughput Sequencing Data | First Place: $1,500 |
| Brent Marshall | Automated Baseball Pitching Machine | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Jean Baptiste Dalien | Automated Baseball Pitching Machine | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Weendell Esthema | Automated Baseball Pitching Machine | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Jonathan Padilla | Automated Baseball Pitching Machine | Second Place: $1,000 |
| Pedro Flores | Using technology to build better lives – the Parking App | Third Place: $500 |
| Charles Pratt | Queer Images – A Portrait of LGBT Americans | Third Place: $500 |
| Bianca Lucien | ProScore & Meti Co. | Poster Award Winner: $250 |