Above: Signage for the 2018 Cooper Hewitt Design Challenge,
including ACCESS and Museum logos.

2018 Design Challenge for high school students
is to make everyday accessible for all

The 2018 National High School Design Competition at the Cooper Hewitt Smithstonian Design Museum is a competition that challenges students to make the everyday accessible by considering a place, process, or object they regularly use, identifying a challenge that a user with a disability might have with it. They are to design a solution that addresses that challenge and makes the place, process, or object more accessible for all.

The competition encourages students to be ambitious, innovative, and bold. The design competition is open to all teens ages 13 through 19 years old who are high school students in 9th through 12th grades, or who are homeschooled students working toward a high school degree anywhere in the United States. Participants may enter as an individual or as a team of up to three people. The entry deadline is February 12 by 11:59 p.m. EST.

The National High School Design Competition is organized in two stages. In Stage One, competitors will create and submit their design ideas per the entry requirements. Cooper Hewitt will select three finalists to proceed to Stage Two of the Design Competition. All Stage One entries will be judged anonymously.

During Stage Two, the three finalists will finalize their designs according to the requirements in the National High School Design Competition: Stage Two Brief document, which will be sent only to the selected finalists. Then, finalists will participate in a series of mentoring activities and travel to New York City to present their designs in person to the judges.

For more information about what the winner and three finalists will be awarded; competition rules and conditions; entry requirements; resources, and more, visit the Cooper Hewitt 2018 National High School Design Competition website.