Student start-ups will present their winning solutions to real-world problems at April 4 event

Media Contacts: Matt Lockwood; Wayne State University; 313.577.9098; mlockwood@wayne.edu; Barbara Fornasiero; EAFocus Communications; 248.260.8466; barbara@eafocus.com

Detroit — April 2, 2018 — Students at Wayne State University, one of the nation’s preeminent urban research universities, have joined in the driving force of students nationwide impacting social change through powerful movements such as #MeToo, #GunReformNow, #BlackLivesMatter and #TimesUp. Now the WSU community is invited to the 2018 Social Innovation Showcase to see how student Warriors are mobilizing to transform their ideas into solutions that affect social change.

Organized by OptimizeWayne, the event will take place on Wednesday, April 4, at the Student Center Ballroom from 5 p.m.–6:30 p.m. OptimizeWayne is a student-run social innovation program that provides students with a community and resources to create their own social change initiatives. Founded by WSU students Kavya Davuluri and Limi Sharif in 2017, OptimizeWayne is an example of the programs supported and encouraged by the Wayne Innovation Hub , launched in fall 2017 to enhance the university’s overall culture of innovation.

The Social Innovation Showcase will feature WSU social entrepreneurs who have already received up to $50,000 in funding and awards for their ideas. As student start-ups and organizations present their solutions to real-world problems, attendees will be inspired by the passion and hard work that has been put into developing these initiatives, and have the chance to network with these professional student entrepreneurs to learn more about social change innovation.

This is a free event, but if planning to attend, an RSVP is appreciated at https://www.optimizewayne.org/showcase2018/. Light refreshments will be served.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering nearly 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to more than 27,000 students. The Wayne Innovation Hub was developed to help coordinate and support programs for entrepreneurship education, technology commercialization, and community partnerships, and to enhance Wayne State University’s overall culture of innovation.

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