Annual Student Policy Challenge
The Portman Center challenges University of Cincinnati students across majors to propose solutions to significant issues in local and national politics. Participating teams present their proposals to expert guest judges and are encouraged to bring their proposals into action by sharing their research with lawmakers and other public changemakers.
2026–27 Education Policy Challenge
Improving outcomes in K–12 schools
The Portman Center for Policy Solutions invites teams of undergraduate students from across the university to propose policy solutions to improve student achievement in K–12 schools.
Teams of 2 to 4 members will submit written proposals for the opportunity to compete in the in-person finalist challenge on November 19. The winning team will receive $300 per team member and will have the opportunity to represent UC in the inter-university Policy Challenge Super Bowl at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics in February 2027.
The Challenge:
Across the U.S., politicians, educators, and families continue to grapple with how to provide the best K–12 education outcomes for students. Improving educational outcomes is consistently an important issue for the American public and policymakers. Despite the importance of education policy, as well as high levels of education expenditures, the U.S. trails many of its peers in education outcomes. 2025 nationwide surveys of school district leaders identified raising reading and math achievement, recruiting and keeping effective teachers, chronic absenteeism, and classroom disruptions as some of the biggest challenges facing American schools. Though some places (e.g., Mississippi) have made remarkable improvements in reading and math scores, most places are stagnant. Testing outcomes have decreased in rural, suburban, and urban districts, regardless of the district’s financial status. Though the drop in test scores can be partially attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated challenges, many states have seen test scores consistently drop over the past decades.
Call to students:
Your job as a policymaker is to uncover the barriers to student achievement and address them. Your solutions must be focused at a state or local level. You can examine issues including, but not limited to: staffing, discipline and classroom disruption, instruction, accountability, curriculum – especially approaches to reading and math instruction, food insecurity, chronic absenteeism, technology, and family support. Your solution must go beyond simply adding funding to existing programs, and if your plan requires political consensus — such as state legislation — you must explain how you will build it. You must contain your proposal to two pages. No policy experience is necessary: the Portman Center will connect your team with faculty mentors, policy professionals, and community experts to help you refine your proposal.
Hone your proposal
Participants are invited to join an open workshop session with Challenge faculty mentors, Professor Ben Farrer and Professor Rachel Torres, on September 28. During the workshop, teams will have the opportunity to sign up for one dedicated virtual meeting (max. 30 minutes) with a faculty advisor.
Teams invited to continue to the finalist round will be paired with a policy mentor. Each finalist team will have the opportunity to join one virtual policy mentor meeting to discuss their proposal ahead of the finalist presentations.
Policy mentors
- To be announced
Key dates and deadlines
Info session, Monday, September 14, 2:00-3:15, Clifton Court Hall 2120. No registration required. Snacks provided.
Team registration deadline: Email PortmanCenter@uc.edu by Monday, September 28.
Workshop office hours, Monday, September 28, 2:00-3:15, Clifton Court Hall 2120. Teams that attend workshop have first opportunity to schedule faculty mentor sessions (window for faculty mentor sessions is 9/29–10/16)
Proposal deadline: Monday, October 19, 11:59 p.m. EST by email to PortmanCenter@uc.edu
Finalists will be named by Friday, October 23. Finalists teams will be matched for one consultation with an external professional in education policy (window for policy leader consultations is 10/28–11/13)
Finalists must submit proposals and visual presentations by Monday, November 16, 11:59 p.m. EST.
Finalists will present their proposals on Thursday, November 20 at 3:00 p.m. in Clifton Court Hall 5280. A winner will be named.
Develop a plan that addresses education policy at the district, city, county, or state level. You can expand, adjust, and improve upon existing grants or programs by identifying what the existing policy is, clearly identifying the opportunity to improve, and explaining how you will solve for that. Or you may create something completely new! Your plan must identify a funding source or sources and must comply with local and federal regulatory structures and laws.
To help refine proposals, participants are encouraged to attend Workshop office hours, available at in Clifton Court Hall on Monday, September 28, 2:00-3:15.
Written proposals must be no more than two pages single spaced with a minimum of 10-point font and standard margins. Supporting graphics and a works cited page will not count toward the page count.
Judges will review proposals based on the following criteria:
Purpose: Have you clearly outlined how your team’s proposal will answer the challenge prompt?
Impact: Are all stakeholders identified and included in the development of the proposal?
Sustainability: Is this a realistic long-term solution?
Process: Has your team identified a timeline, proponent, and opponents for the proposal?
Creativity: Is your proposal a fresh take on the issue?
Financing: Does your plan clearly identify how it will be financed?
Presentation: Was the proposal clearly articulated? For finalist in-person visual presentations, was the team able to answer judges’ questions?
Overall Quality: Is the evidence well researched? Is the problem well articulated? Does the proposal follow the evidence? Are all the elements (need, evidence, solution, financing, method of enactment) included? Were citations provided?
The contest is open to all UC undergraduate students and no prior policy background or coursework is required. Teams may have 2 to 4 participants.
All participants must be present at the in-person finals to be eligible for the $300 award and to represent UC at the Institute of Politics Policy Challenge Super Bowl.
Who is eligible to participate?
This contest is open to all current University of Cincinnati undergraduate students, regardless of major/course of study.
Is past experience in the subject area required to participate?
No prior policy background or coursework is required. Just bring your well-seasoned ideas.
How many people can join a team?
Teams must have a minimum of two members and a maximum of four.
What proposal advising is available to teams, and what are the per-team limits?
All students are welcome to the September 14 info session and September 28 workshop office hours.
Each registered team is eligible to sign up for and participate in one 30-minute session with a faculty mentor. Sessions are not guaranteed and are subject to faculty advisor availability. Sign-up priority will be given to teams that attend the Sep. 28 workshop.
Teams that continue to the finalist round will be paired with a policy mentor; Portman Center staff will facilitate scheduling of one virtual meeting (max. 30 minutes).
How long can the proposal be?
No more than two pages single spaced with a minimum of 10-point font and standard margins. Supporting graphics and a works cited page should appear after the two-page proposal will not count toward the page count.
Can edits be made to proposals after it has been submitted?
If the submission deadline has not yet passed, you can resubmit an edited proposal once. No edits will be accepted past the deadline.
Is a visual presentation required?
First-round submissions will include written proposals only. Finalists will be notified by October 23 and will be provided a slide deck template. Finalists must submit their slides by November 16 for the in-person presentations on November 19.
Can there be changes to a team’s composition after registration?
Teammates can be removed, but no one can be added once a team has been selected as a finalist. All changes must be emailed to PortmanCenter@uc.edu.
What does the winning team receive?
Each member of the winning team will receive $300 and the opportunity to travel to Chicago to present their proposal in an inter-university competition at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics.
2025–26 Health Policy Challenge
Our second university-wide contest cultivated undergraduate student proposals to improve health care access, affordability, and quality. Teams of 2 to 4 undergraduate students created policy proposals for programs that address a health care issue in the City of Cincinnati, Hamilton County, or the state of Ohio. During open workshops and virtual meetings, team members met with community and faculty mentors to discuss their proposals and prepare for the finals.
4 finalist teams presented their proposals to guest judges Greg Hartmann (Partner, KMK Law), Liz Keating (Vice President of Government Affairs and Advocacy, Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber), and Holly Stutz Smith (Head of Corporate Communications and Media Relations, Kroger). The winning team received an award of $300 per team member and continued on to compete with teams from other universities at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics in February 2026.
The winning project, titled “Remote Methadone Monitoring Pilot Program" details a more accessible form of Opioid Use Disorder treatment for individuals facing difficulties regarding transportation or clinic access. The proposal was presented by undergraduates Selma Younes, Samantha Jackson, Tala Hamdan and Yara Chaouali.
2024–25 Urban Rural Policy Challenge
Our first university-wide contest solicited undergraduate student proposals to address challenges facing both urban and rural communities. Acting as lawmakers or nongovernmental organizations, students developed budgeted plans to address broadband expansion, childcare access, food insecurity, healthcare access, economic development, or substance use disorder.
Five finalist teams presented to guest judges Greg Hartmann (Partner, KMK Law), Liz Keating (Vice President of Government Affairs and Advocacy, Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber), and Karen Ryan (Executive Director of Government Relations, University of Cincinnati). The winning team received an award of $300 per team member and continued on to compete with teams from other universities at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics in February 2025.
