By DesignDash standards, this one was unique. There was still a ballroom full of 71 eager high school students teaming with peers from eight neighboring districts, but the ideas they pitched were specifically designed at conquering cancer.

With Iowa having the second-highest and fastest growing rate of new cancers in the United States, coupled with a desire to engage young people in tackling a serious problem that is real, relevant, and pertinent to their lives, the University of Iowa Jacobson Institute and its director Dawn Bowlus partnered with the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center on a late September day to put STEM innovation into action. When the event ended, this DesignDash wasn’t about finding a fool-proof solution. It was about sparking ideas, inspiring collaboration, and reminding students that their voices matter in any fight, especially against cancer. 

Wild ideas were welcome and some pushed the edge. Others made a senior staffer at a medical center stop and listen. Because of that, Bowlus and DesignDash are going global, coordinating a similar event in Lisbon, Portugal, where Bowlus will also share and discuss opportunities to integrate Jacobson Institute’s BizInnovator Startup innovation and entrepreneurship curriculum from March 6-14.

Watching DesignDash unfold on that early-fall Iowa City day was Ana Rita Constante Raimundo, executive director at the Católica-Luz Clinical Academic Centre in Portugal. Constante Raimundo, who was on an international exchange through Global Ties, was so moved by DesignDash she submitted a project request through the American Councils for International Education and the Young Transatlantic Innovation Leaders Initiative to bring DesignDash to her country. The project in Portugal is officially titled, Fostering a Culture of Innovation in Healthcare: The Católica-Luz Clinical Academic Centre Experience.

“This is a huge highlight for DesignDash,” said Bowlus. “This is our first opportunity to take the program into a completely different environment, see how it works, and establish a partner.”

Bowlus will be joined by Dr. Sarah Vigmostad, associate professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Iowa. Vigmostad's work focuses on healthcare innovation at the intersection of engineering and medicine. The University's Office of International Programs is sponsoring her involvement in this exchange.

Started in the Spring of 2022, DesignDash is a fast-paced innovation startup event for Iowa high school students. During the day, students form teams, identify a real-world problem, research solutions, build a startup solution, and present their idea to judges with guidance from educators, entrepreneurs, industry experts, and mentors. The program is designed to introduce students to innovation, collaboration, and the fundamentals of startup thinking through a hands-on experience.

The first DesignDash was held in Iowa City before expanding to Cedar Rapids in Year 2. It is now being held state-wide in locations from Ottumwa to Des Moines to Sioux City. More than 1,300 students and 135 schools have participated in the program.

Now, for the first time, it will be conducted overseas.

“Formal innovation and entrepreneurship training is rare in medical education,” Constante Raimundo said. “Unlike business and engineering students, medical students receive little exposure to frameworks such as design thinking. [DesignDash] addresses the gap by fostering a culture of innovation within the Católica-Luz Clinical Academic.”

The actual DesignDash will be held March 11 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Western European Time). On March 12, there will be a debrief session to reflect on DesignDash and explore opportunities to further integrate innovation and entrepreneurial thinking into the medical student experience. 

“I am hopeful that this is the beginning of a partnership with Católica-Luz Clinical Academic,” Bowlus said. “This exchange provides the opportunity to explore what an ongoing relationship would look like. It opens a new model for us to look at how we expand our reach.”

Learn more about DesignDash by clicking HERE.