Meet Southwest Indiana's Student Entrepreneurs Competing in the 2026 STARTedUP Challenge
Eleven Student Ventures from Southwest Indiana Compete for a Shot at $25,000
The STARTedUP Foundation is proud to announce the regional finalist teams advancing in the 2026 STARTedUP Challenge — Indiana’s premier high school pitch competition, now in its 9th year (formerly known as Innovate WithIN). With a $25,000 grand prize on the line, the STARTedUP Challenge brings together the state’s brightest young innovators and challenges them to develop real ventures, pitch to judges, and compete for life-changing opportunities. The Southwest Indiana (Region 1) Competition will be held on April 17, 2026 from 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM CST at Kramer Pavilion at Deaconess, hosted in partnership with Deaconess. The event is free and open to the public.
How the Competition Works
The 2026 STARTedUP Challenge follows an exciting multi-stage format designed to identify and accelerate Indiana's top young entrepreneurs:
Regionals: April 2026: One winning team will be selected from each of the 7 regional competitions across the state.
Wildcard Selection: 3 additional teams from across Indiana will be chosen as wildcard finalists, bringing the total number of advancing teams to 10.
Regional & Wildcard Prize: Each advancing team member (up to 3 members per team) will receive a $1,000 prize.
6-Week Bootcamp: All 10 advancing teams will enter an intensive bootcamp featuring weekly calls, mentorship opportunities, expert support, and a 2-day in-person experience, all designed to take their ventures to the next level.
Finals: June 12, 2026: The top teams will compete in the STARTedUP Challenge Finals, where the ultimate winner will claim the $25,000 grand prize.
Southwest Indiana Finalists
We are proud to introduce the student teams competing to represent Southwest Indiana at the 2026 STARTedUP Challenge:
Differently Able INC.: Maleah Dearing & Aubree Gogel | Southridge High School
Focal: Lleyton Peters | Mount Vernon High School
Hand in Hand: Leah Hollinden, Chloe Lindauer & Isla Epple | Tell City Jr-Sr High School
Hephaestus: Alex Li, Joseph Arisa & Gavin Dycus | Signature School
MindGuide: Joseph Quinonez | Signature School
MyJourney: Nicholas Fleming | Signature School
PageMD: Seth Donea & Chaz Burkett | Signature School Inc
PulmoVOC: Jonathan Davis | Signature School
Stone and Flame: Paige McCoy & Alyssa Patrick | Tell City Jr-Sr High School
Supp: Keats Waller | Bloomington High School South
Verdant Labs: Akshath Saravanan | Signature School
Powered by the Innovation Accelerator Classroom
Many of this year's competing students have been prepared through STARTedUP's Innovation Accelerator; a three-level professional development path that helps teachers bring real-world entrepreneurial thinking into their classrooms. For eight years, STARTedUP has partnered with educators across Indiana to build classroom cultures rooted in innovation, problem solving, and real-world impact. Through the Innovation Accelerator, teachers receive training, coaching, classroom-ready resources, and access to a statewide community of educators doing groundbreaking work. Over the course of the program, students identify real-world problems they care about and build venture concepts with tangible deliverables like prototypes, business models, and pitch presentations. Students have gone on to launch businesses, nonprofits, inventions, services, civic projects, in-school initiatives, and more.
Event Details
Date: April 17, 2026
Time: 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM CST
Location: Kramer Pavilion at Deaconess, 4011 Gateway Blvd #4011, Newburgh, IN 47630
Host: Deaconess
Admission: Free and open to the public
About the STARTedUP Foundation
The STARTedUP Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to building the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs across Indiana. Through programs like the STARTedUP Challenge and the Innovation Accelerator, STARTedUP works with students, teachers, and communities to turn classrooms into launchpads for real-world ideas. Now in its 9th year, the STARTedUP Challenge (formerly Innovate WithIN) has grown into the state's premier high school entrepreneurship competition. For more information, visit www.startedup.org.
