News & Media

Erin Olson earns first place in UW-Green Bay Innovation On-Ramp Showcase

GREEN BAY-Erin Olson won the WiSys Innovation On-Ramp Showcase at UW-Green Bay on November 6.

The showcase was the final part of WiSys Innovation On-Ramp, a multi-week, multi-campus learning experience that uses both virtual and in-person sessions to allow students to learn innovation skills and advance their ideas. The program is open to undergraduate and graduate students in all areas of study.

Olson, a business administration major, impressed the judges and audience with her innovation, “Match. Connect. Move In. Roommates Made Easy.” The goal is to aid students living on college campuses in making their roommate selections and reduce the number of negative roommate experiences. Her app would allow students to create profiles and answer carefully crafted questions to find potential roommates who have similar interests and lifestyles, improving their opportunities for positive experiences.

With her first-place finish, Olson receives $1,000 and qualifies for the statewide Big Idea Tournament, which will be held on April 18, 2025.

Marketing major Victoria Stock earned second place and $500 for her idea, “The Proactive Reserve.” Stock’s idea is to create an app that helps people be productive and fulfilled in their daily lives by analyzing obligations (homework, classes, clubs, jobs, etc.) and scheduling times for breaks and fun activities. The scheduler will also predict when an individual is nearing burnout and be able to adjust itself to prevent the individual from reaching the burnout stage, empowering the person to continue to put their best foot forward.

Danielle Johnson, a business administration major, earned third place and $250 for her idea, “Stik With It.” The goal of her app is to make a collaborative environment for caregivers and keep kids on set routines. This would allow all caregivers to engage in the same app to see schedules and maintain routines, no matter who is caring for the child.

Additional participants included:

  • Ellie Weber
  • Joshua Leick
  • Grace Shafer

Thank you to the event judges:

  • Justin Seidl, Founder & CEO of Sequoir and Partner at Novotta
  • Stephen Pounds, Co-Founder & CEO of Vadar Alpha
  • Aslinn Merriman, Digital Project Manager at Voith Paper

Photos from the event can be viewed here. Thank you to UW-Green Bay photographer Daniel Moore for attending and taking photos.

Innovation On-Ramp was originally developed for UW-Green Bay and has since expanded to UW-Platteville, UW-Eau Claire, and UW-Stout. It will expand to additional Universities of Wisconsin schools in Fall 2025. To learn more about Innovation On-Ramp and other WiSys programming, please visit our website.