Designing the future of education around human connection at the REP4 Midwest Regional Summit

Pitches ranged from classes offered to high school seniors to teach them about college majors, scholarships and other resources, to an app that matches you with a "campus buddy" your first year to show you how to navigate college.

Students also got a taste of college life, spending the night in a living center on campus, eating meals in a dining hall and exploring amenities including the Rec Center, a rock climbing wall and resources in Grand Valley's student center.

Between the overnight stay and the intensive design-thinking process, Grand Rapids University Prep student Zamaya Williams felt as if she had a better understanding of the college experience by the end.

"It's not very common for grown-ups to take into account what students have to say," said Williams. "REP4 gave us the opportunity to understand that they are here for us and willing to hear us and our ideas out."

One thing the students get from the REP4 experience is a better understanding of the reality of college life, said student mentor and biomedical sciences major Jessica Perez-Patino.

"College is very much your own kind of journey, and I think when kids go in thinking that it's just a straight line, they get hurt with the actual reality," said Perez-Patino, who is in her third year as a REP4 student mentor. "If we teach them it's going to be a doozy; that they're not going to be perfect in the process, it kind of makes them feel more human."

This was the first year that the summit had an overnight component, said Mike Saunders, REP4 Midwest Summit coordinator.

"We wanted to present an enhanced experience that was more about that human connection," said Saunders.