Based on their individual expertise, judges will recommend up to ten honorees to be selected by ED from the pool of Second Round Submissions (“Blueprints”).
Judges may assign up to 20 points for each selection criterion during the judging of Second Round Submissions (for a total of up to 100 points) based on the following five selection criteria:
- Innovative. The extent that the model of the CTE makerspace described in a submission exhibits novelty or ingenuity, and has the potential to significantly transform current practices, especially in response to economic and systemic constraints;
- Replicable. The extent that the model of the CTE makerspace described in the submission is (1) able to be adopted and replicated by other schools, including schools serving low-income communities, based on design, budget, and curriculum; and (2) includes approaches and options that could be used to easily implement the model in schools with limited resources, such as schools serving low-income communities;
- Multi-functional. The extent that the model of the CTE makerspace described in the submission has the capacity to be utilized by a broad cross-section of students, including various grade-levels, students with disabilities, multidisciplinary subjects, and CTE programs and skills;
- Feasible. The extent that the submission demonstrates the ability of the entrant to successfully implement the model of the CTE makerspace described in the submission within the Challenge timeframe and with its proposed resources including support from the local community and businesses; and
- Sustainable. The extent that the model of the CTE makerspace described in the submission demonstrates the capability to sustain the makerspace following the Challenge including administration, maintenance, curricular programming, teacher involvement, and community support while being able to adapt to changing needs and technologies over time.
Judges may assign up to 5 bonus points during the judging of Second Round Submissions (in addition to a total score of up to 100 points in the selection criteria described above, for a total score of up to 105 points) based on the following selection criterion:
- Addressing need. The extent to which the student population served by the eligible entry is low-income, as defined by the percentage of students enrolled in free and reduced price lunch programs under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1759), as amended.
ED will review the recommendations of the judges and may consider additional characteristics when selecting honorees from the top scoring submissions to ensure diverse distribution of awards, including:
- School size (number of students);
- Percentage of students enrolled in free and reduced price lunch programs under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1759), as amended; and
- Geographic location and local population density.