Community Solutions Challenge

• I'm a high schooler at a registered high school, but I am not of high school age. Am I still eligible to participate?​
  Yes, participants are still eligible to participate if they are not of high school age, if and only if they are in a registered North Carolina High School. This, however, does not apply to homeschooled students. Homeschooled students must be within the high school range (14-18).

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• ​How will we communicate with you?
  All information regarding workshops, competition materials, deadlines, reminders, or logistics will be sent out to the team's registered advisor (as listed in the registration form). The advisor must satisfy the requirements stated in the eligibility section of this rulebook. It is the responsibility of the advisor to relay the information we send out to the participants.
   

• I can't attend every single workshop on the dates and times stated. Are they mandatory?
  It is okay if you are not able to attend every workshop. Recordings of the workshops will be provided shortly after each workshop. Each workshop will be an hour and a half long.
   

• How is attendance being tracked?​
  Each team will enter the meeting room online with their school name, and attendance will be tracked as such. If teams cannot get together, each participant will have the name of their school as well as their name. In the case of multiple school teams, we will designate numbers (Example: School A1, School A2). We will be recording attendance in the first 15 minutes and the last 20 minutes of the session. In order to receive the certificate, you must attend 75% of sessions. 
   

•  I joined after the letter of intent feedback deadline. Am I too late to attend workshops?
  Nope! Competitors who register after the December 1 deadline will still be able to attend workshops that occur after they register. It is important to note that to participate in future workshops, they MUST register at least 24 hours before the upcoming workshop. However, they will still have access to past workshops as they will be recorded and posted on our website. 
   

• What is the difference between the letter of intent feedback deadline and the registration deadlines? Will they affect my score at the competition?
  The letter of intent deadline is meant to be an earlier deadline for participants to submit their letters of intent in the fall so they can get mentor feedback. The registration deadline will also be a time for participants to submit their letters of intent; however, they will not receive mentor feedback as it is much later in competition stage. It is important to note that submitting during the priority deadline is truly optional. The sole act of submitting letters of intent during the priority deadline will not affect scoring. However, we do recommend participants submit early so they can receive mentor feedback. 
   

• Do I need to submit my registration forms along with my LOI for the December 1st Deadline? 
  It is strongly recommended that registration forms be completed BEFORE the December 1 deadline. Even if you do not plan to submit on the LOI Feedback deadline, submitting registration forms at least 24 hours before a planned workshop date ensures that you can attend the workshop series and get valuable information. However, you can also submit your registration forms along with your LOI for the LOI feedback deadline. This ensures that participants will be eligible to participate in any workshop that happens after this deadline. 
   

• How are winners chosen? 
  A winner will be chosen (either team or individual) based on the judges' scores on a pre-determined rubric. The rubric will be released in the spring semester. Participants will have a chance to review the rubric and make changes as needed. The solutions will be judged on how well the team or individual presents them in relation to the context of their problem. The highest-scoring project, irrespective of category, will be the winner. 
  To be eligible for scoring by the judges, teams must register and submit a written grant document by the April 10 deadline, and attend the competition (virtually or in person) to present their proposal pitch.
   

• I don't think the registration deadline is an appropriate time for teams to submit their letters of intent.
  If you cannot submit by the December 1 deadline (or shortly after, if we can still review it), the team should skip right to submitting the grant only.