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Attention Hawaiʻi Island Youth!
Here’s your chance to make a difference during this pandemic! Join our FishTank design competition to help your community recover from COVID-19.
The challenge categories are broad so there is something for everyone to solve.

FishTank 2020, pre-COVID

Challenge Categories
- Health & Life
- Education
- Vulnerable Populations
- Community
- Business and Economy
Healthcare, well-being, and illness prevention.
Schools, home schooling, and education-related activities.
Economically disadvantaged and socially isolated groups in our community, e.g., homeless, mentally ill, and low-income residents.
This covers the areas of socialization that are impacted by social distancing, e.g., the inabilty to do certain activities or to gather with friends.
Local industries, businesses, and workers.
In addition to helping our community, you will have a chance to work with STEM professionals, and win cash prizes!


FishTank 2020, pre-COVID
Prizes
2nd
up to
$
0
1st
up to
$
0
3rd
up to
$
0
includes $750 team donation*
includes $1000 team donation*
includes $500 team donation*
1st
up to
$
0
includes $1000 team donation*
2nd
up to
$
0
includes $750 team donation*
3rd
up to
$
0
includes $500 team donation*
*Team donation is paid to a Hawaii Island non-profit organization, club, school, that is STEM-related.
You don’t have to place to win! There will be a number of additional monetary prizes for outstanding projects.
FAQ
What is Fish Tank?
FishTank Design Competition is a NexTech program that was inspired by a popular television series – Shark Tank – where entrepreneurs and inventors pitch their ideas to judges who also happen to be investors. Here’s an example of a Shark Tank on the Rachel Ray show:
With the FishTank, Hawaii County students (grades 6-12) have the opportunity to work together in teams to solve important local problems. These teams will collaborate on a solution for about 10 weeks and will present their work and ideas to judges at a competition where they are ranked based on a number of criteria, including their engineering process, documentation, and solution outcome.
Will this competition be virtual?
Yes. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, we will be hosting this entire competition via Zoom. Teams will also be provided with access to online collaboration tools.
Who can participate?
This competition is open to Hawaii Island students in grades 6-12 who meet the technical requirements for participation. These include:
- Access to a high-speed internet connection
- A non-DOE Gmail account
- Desktop or laptop computer and webcam
- Zoom video conferencing capability
Please note that this competition will be limited to 20 teams of 2-4 students.
What’s in it for participants?
NexTech Fish Tank offers local students a number of benefits:
- A great experience and learning opportunity where they build valuable problem solving, teamwork, and presentation skills;
- An opportunity to collaborate with and establish mentoring relationships with local STEM, government, and business leaders;
- An opportunity to work on an idea that might qualify as a STEM Honors Project;
- Prizes and bragging rights!
- 1st Place Team – up to $2,200, (includes a $1,000 team donation*)
- 2nd Place Team – up to $1,500, (includes a $500 team donation*)
- 3rd Place Team – up to $1,300 (includes a $500 team donation*)
*Team donation is paid to a Hawaii Island non-profit organization, club, school, that is STEM-related.
What problem will we be tackling?
This competition is dedicated to COVID-19. Hawaii Island students will have the opportunity to contribute to ideas that can help our community recover from the impact of COVID-19. We are looking for solutions to help our community across a variety of categories and know that our students will come up with good ones. Here are the solution categories:
- Health & Life
- Education
- Vulnerable Populations
- Community
- Business and the Economy
Will I need to present a pitch, like in Shark Tank?
Yes. Each team will present their solution virtually. They will have 5 minutes to share the highlights of their project and their idea.
How will our project be judged?
Teams will be scored on the quality of their technical report and notebook (documentation of the team’s engineering process), their teamwork, and the final presentation.
What are the key dates for Fish Tank 2021?
Here are the key dates to watch out for. Additional details will be provided at a later time. As needed, adjustments to the schedule may be made.
- Registration - December 4 - January 8
- Kick-Off - January 23 (Zoom Meeting)
- Project Proposal Submission - February 6 (Teams will submit a summary of what they intend to pursue for approval by the program committee)
- Project Proposal Approval - February 9
- Technical Q&A - February 20 (Consultation with an engineer)
- Project Report, Presentation Slides, and Notebook Submission - April 3
- Competition Prelims - April 17
Final Competition - April 24 (Zoom Meeting)
Where can I get more details?
If you have more questions, contact us!
Important Dates
December 4: Pre-registration starts
December 12: Informational meeting and registration
January 15: Registration deadline
January 23: Kick-off (Zoom Meeting)
February 6: Project proposal submission
February 9: Project proposal approval
February 27: Technical Q&A
April: Project report, presentation slides, and notebook submission
April 17: Competition prelims
April 24: Final competition


FishTank 2020, pre-COVID
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Feel free to contact us if you have questions at all!

FishTank 2020, pre-COVID
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Support FishTank 2021 by donating!
All donations will help facilitate FishTank 2021 and fund student awards!