University of Central Missouri Hosts the VRoKCs Spring 2022 Hackathon

Students from Van Horn High School participate in the VROKc Spring 2022 Hackathon, hosted at the Missouri Innovation Campus in Lee’s Summit, MO. Photo courtesy of VRoKCs.

The University of Central Missouri Lee’s Summit recently hosted the VRoKCs Spring Hackathon, a virtual and augmented development challenge for high-school students. Held April 22 through 24 at the Missouri Innovation Campus, this was the first VRoKCs in-person Hackathon following a two-year gap.

 

Participating students learned the hackathon problem statement on April 22 with problems closely aligned to a real-world situation. Utilizing design thinking and collaboration, teams of students from ninth through 12th grade built a functioning AR/VR prototype that addressed the problem identified. After the challenge, teams are able to get assistance in building their prototype into a minimum viable product and with persistence and dedication move onto a commercially viable product.

 

Technical mentors and subject matter experts were available during the hackathon to provide additional assistance. Online support and collaboration tools were also available. Teams checked in their final project and pitch video online with projects judged by a panel of VR/AR and industry partners. The top three teams were awarded trophies.

 

UCM’s participation is made possible through the university’s new Mixed Reality Studio, launched in 2020. The state-of-the-art studio is part of UCM’s Gigabit Lab, housed within the Missouri Innovation Campus in Lee’s Summit.