New MedNexus Challenge open to DCPS students; last year’s winners presented to Congress

University of North FloridaMedNexus, Duval County Public Schools (DCPS) and community partner Two Twelve Benefits are proud to launch the 2025 UNF MedNexus Innovation Challenge for DCPS students. The competition is designed to empower high school students to tackle pressing health and societal issues through creative solutions. This year's challenge, "Break the Vape: Reclaiming teen health through community innovation," calls on teams to address the growing crisis of adolescent vaping.

Applications are open now for teams of four Duval County high school students to compete for scholarships and the chance to pitch their solutions before community leaders. Winning teams are awarded scholarships at $1,000 per team member for first place and $750 per team member for second place. The deadline to apply is Thursday, Sept. 25. The application and guidelines are available on the MedNexus website.

Last year's winners presented to Congress

Last year, four Stanton College Preparatory School students won first place in the Spring 2024 MedNexus Innovation Challenge. After, they made the leap from regional recognition to the national spotlight by winning Florida's Fourth District Congressional App Challenge and presenting their app "Click" to Congressman Aaron Bean in Washington, D.C.

That MedNexus Challenge was presented by UNF in partnership with the City of Palm Coast and Flagler Schools and challenged students to design solutions to address teen social media addiction. Bean selected the winning team, comprised of Annabel Kaye Sai Tejasvi Vegi, Owen Bayley and Dorothy Peterson, who developed an app that helps limit teen social media use by redirecting attention toward more productive activities.

"By conducting a study, we realized that many of our friends spent too much time on social media," said Kaye. "It made us realize that our idea could potentially have a real-world impact."

The team stood out among more than 12,000 students and nearly 3,900 app submissions across all 50 states.

"Their innovative thinking, creativity and teamwork illustrate the bright future of technology in Northeast Florida," Bean said.

The app is now displayed in the U.S. Capitol, featured on the House of Representatives' website, and the students attended a celebratory reception on Capitol Hill in their honor. The students now join a growing network of young innovators whose work has captured the attention of policymakers and the broader technology community.