A team of University of Nebraska-Lincoln students was one of three university teams to participate as finalists in the 2024 national Invent2Prevent competition in Washington D.C. Lauren Ostrowski, Kayla Enfield and Joselyn Vacek, were invited to present at the national competition and received the third-place award in the Invent2Prevent competition from Bill Braniff, director of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships.
The annual contest, open to college and high school students throughout the United States, challenges students to develop programs that prevent targeted violence and terrorism in their local communities. The Invent2Prevent competition is a partnership between the Department of Homeland Security’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, EdVenture Partners, Credence Management Solutions and the McCain Institute. The University of Nebraska Public Policy Center serves as national evaluator of the Invent2Prevent experiential learning program.