Northern Indiana: October 2025 Highlights
Innovation In Action
Each month, we celebrate the stories of Innovation Accelerator teachers and students making a difference across Indiana and beyond.
Quick Hits:
AMP Lab at Electric Works: Students complete Kelley Automotive finance challenge, present to CFO, one student's project is now being pursued by the company
Hanover Central High School & Lowell Senior High School: Two educators inducted into the Society of Innovators honored for championing youth innovation
Lowell Senior High School: Students rebrand the Red Devils Bistro and quadruple sales in opening week
Real Finance & Real Stakes
Matthew Gebhard: AMP Lab at Electric Works
When nearly forty students at AMP Lab at Electric Works wrapped up their latest finance challenge, they weren't turning in assignments, but rather presenting their analyses to Matt Bennett, CFO of Kelley Automotive Group.
With the help of community coach Jeff Roberts, Matt Bennett partnered with Matthew Gebhard's students to guide them through analyzing publicly traded auto companies like Lithia Motors, Penske, and AutoNation. Working in pairs, students dove into the SEC's EDGAR database to examine 10-K filings and financial statements, learning to calculate the key ratios that reveal a company's financial health.
"Matt was absolutely awesome to work with," Gebhard said. "He asked the students to create specific ratios that help determine the health and viability of a company and met with them every other week to review their work."
When presentation day arrived, students showcased detailed spreadsheets and ratio analyses, but some went even further. Bennett was particularly impressed by Lana and Patricia's competitor analysis, which compared floor-plan balances (the amount a dealership has out on loan for cars on its lot) across multiple companies. Another group created a how-to guide for Bennett's accounting team.
Then came the standout: one student developed a custom ChatGPT integration that connects directly to the SEC's EDGAR database, retrieves financial information, and formats it into ready-to-use ratio tables. Bennett is now exploring how to pursue that student's project to continue developing it for Kelley Automotive.
"This was my first real finance challenge here at Amp," Gebhard reflected. "I am a nerd for spreadsheets and I found that kids really caught on to using a spreadsheet quickly once they got over their fear of using one... I am proud of the work they have done!"
These students have certainly transformed finance from abstract theory into something tangible: a skill set businesses actually need.
Recognized for Inspiring the Next Generation
Kristina Fleming: Hanover Central High School & Debera Hinchy: Lowell Senior High School
Two Innovation Accelerator teachers recently received recognition that celebrates not just what they do in their own classrooms, but how they inspire innovation across their entire communities. Kristina Fleming and Debera Hinchy were announced as 2025 Advocate for Youth Innovation inductees into The Society of Innovators at Purdue Northwest.
For twenty years, the Society has celebrated "the people and ideas that shape Northwest Indiana's future," according to CEO Jason Williams. At the annual luncheon on October 29th, the 2025 Innovators Awards honored individuals and teams whose innovations create new solutions, benefit society, and generate measurable value.
The Advocate for Youth Innovation category specifically recognizes educators who champion leaders beyond their own classrooms to ignite creative thinking in others.
"Being selected as a 2025 inductee is truly humbling," Fleming said. "Each day, I strive to grow, improve, and make a greater impact than the day before. I've learned to ask for what may seem impossible, because when the mission is to support and inspire young people, others will always step up to make it possible."
Her message to students and fellow educators carries a powerful simplicity: ask for the moon and embrace the "no's," because progress only happens when we're brave enough to ask.
"I'm excited for what's ahead and remain committed to championing my students and the next generation of innovators—because they are, without question, our future."
For Hinchy, the recognition reflects something she sees every day in her classroom. "It was incredibly humbling for me to be recognized as an Advocate for Youth Innovation," she said. "It's actually a reflection of the creativity, innovation, and drive I see in students every day. I view it less as an honor to me, but more as a celebration of what young people are achieving when they're given space, freedom, and mentoring to explore their ideas."
At STARTedUP, we are proud to say both educators embody what it means to advocate for youth innovation, not only in teaching entrepreneurship in their classrooms, but championing their students and supporting fellow educators across the teaching community to embrace innovation.
When Students Rebrand the Bistro
Deb Hinchy: Lowell Senior HS
Inside Lowell Senior High School, the Red Devils Bistro has evolved from a student-run coffee shop into a gathering place and living laboratory where business concepts turn into real operations.
This rebranding and relaunch was entirely student-driven. From market research and logo design to social media strategy and in-school promotion, students handled every detail. The effort paid off in a big way, with average daily sales going up four times from last year.
"The Bistro's opening week was amazing," Hinchy shared. "There were times when the line was getting long, so other students pitched in to do whatever was needed to meet the customer's demand … More importantly, over twenty students now hold leadership positions…so students aren't just learning business concepts, they’re performing and living them."
One of the most valuable lessons came through what Hinchy calls the 'Bistro Marketing Mash-Up'. After third-year students presented their individual marketing campaigns, second-year students formally critiqued each plan. Then the third-year teams collaborated to select the strongest ideas from all presentations, merging them into one unified campaign.
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One of the great ideas to come out of it was our 'Red Devil Rewards' program, a student-created loyalty card system that incorporates data from QR codes. That, paired with a strong marketing and awareness campaign, really made the Bistro feel fresh and student-owned."
The Red Devils Bistro proves what happens when students have a say. They run it, own it, and continuously improve it. And judging by those opening week sales, the community is noticing.
