GSA seeks a better way to reach higher education for federal challenges
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The General Services Administration wants to know where to reach university-affiliated students and faculty to participate in national requests.
The General Services Administration is sponsoring a new campaign to expand outreach to university and college students, faculty and staff and encourage participation in the growing list of federal challenges that crowdsource civilian help in solving national problems.
Announcing the ReachU Challenge on Monday, GSA aims to expand the pool of higher education-based respondents to government challenges by discovering which digital platforms are best — and worst — to promote government challenge outreach.
“Currently, just 10% of public solvers on Challenge.Gov represent academic institutions,” the notice reads. “We know that academic audiences are talented problem solvers with the potential to deliver new ideas, technologies, designs, algorithms, software, scientific solutions and more.”
GSA is specifically asking respondents to share the best digital platforms or forums for federal prize challenges and competitions to engage with audiences affiliated with higher education institutions.
A spokesperson for GSA told Nextgov/FCW that the agency is “interested in hearing from any and all interested students, staff, faculties and employees affiliated with U.S. academic institutions as part of this crowdsourcing activity.”
The deadline to submit responses is Sept. 8, 2023.