Monthly Archives: April 2025

2025 Preliminary Pitch-off

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On Wednesday, April 9, DifferenceMaker held its 13th Annual 2024 Preliminary Pitch-Off at O’Leary Library on South Campus. This year, 20 student teams got the opportunity to pitch their creative, innovative ideas to a panel of guest judges. Overall, 22 judges participated in this event. At the end of the event, ten finalist student teams were announced. They will compete on April 16 at the 13th Annual DifferenceMaker Idea Challenge for a chance to win a portion of $50,000. 

Team Bear Hugs introduces themselves to Hannah Monbleau from Student Life & Wellbeing

Congratulations to the ten finalist teams!

  • ACE Difference Makers: AI-powered personal assistant designed to help international students navigate university life.
  • Bear Hugs: Amanda Pajak, Dilon Costa, and Aidan McGrail created Calming Hands, a customizable sensory glove for children. This innovative, compassionate solution helps promote comfort and emotional regulation.
  • Comprehension Clicker: A simple handheld slider device that students can use during class to indicate their level of understanding.
  • Fridgie: A mobile app that helps you manage your fridge and pantry effortlessly.
  • iPrep: Camille LeBihan, Ponita Ty, and Mark Callan have built iPrep, an AI-powered platform that acts as a personal career coach, helping students navigate the complex and often overwhelming process of finding internships and jobs.
  • MyHub: A platform that lets anyone build their own personal website with no coding required.
  • Pawva: A wifi connected pet bed that tracks pet vitals by Jiya Panchal, Tanish Araveti, Owen O’Brien
  • Sense Makers: Oscar Aliaga, Cintya Gajardo Vejar, and Bruce Lezana are developing I-Learn, a personalized, gamified AI-powered learning platform aimed at improving educational equity and student engagement.
  • Shay G. Productions: The Caraïbes Connect’s vision is to become New England’s first-ever community event celebrating Caribbean culture
  • Shine In Academy: Madhavi Tarugu is addressing learning gaps in high school education with Core Advantage SAT Prep, a program designed to support students who have fallen behind in math and language—providing a stronger foundation for future academic success.
A judge observes the Team posters

Learn More About DifferenceMaker:  https://www.uml.edu/differencemaker/about/
Watch the Preliminary Pitch-off 2024 video on YouTube, here!