Samsung Electronics America, Inc. today announced the 300 State Finalists in the annual Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest, a $3 million* nationwide competition that challenges students to creatively use STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills to address a community challenge. Celebrating its 10th anniversary this 2019-2020 school year, the competition fosters critical thinking and creative problem solving skills among thousands of students across the country as 6-12 grade classrooms are tasked with solving a challenge impacting their community.This year, teachers nationwide submitted creative and strategic proposals to solve current problems, such as environmental issues, reducing the carbon footprint, mental health, vaping and student safety. Throughout the next month, each of the 300 State Finalists will engage their community and conduct field visits to gain firsthand knowledge of the issue, evolving their initial proposals into a detailed project plan to be executed this school year.

“Since launching the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest a decade ago, we’ve seen students tackle some of the biggest issues facing their generation and this year is no different,” said Ann Woo, Senior Director of Corporate Citizenship at Samsung Electronics America. “From suicide prevention to single use plastic alternatives, teachers and students are stepping up to creatively address these important issues head-on. We’re thrilled to congratulate the State Finalists of the 10th annual Samsung Solve for Tomorrow contest and look forward to seeing these STEM projects progress in the coming months.”

Selected from a pool of more than 2,000 entries nationwide, the 300 State Finalists will each receive a Samsung tablet for their classroom. Each State Finalist also has the opportunity to advance through future phases of the contest to win additional prizes and educational opportunities. The remaining phases of the competition include:

• 100 State Winner schools will advance in the contest and receive $15,000 in technology and classroom materials as well as a video kit to help showcase their project.
• 20 National Finalist schools will be selected to travel to the pitch event in the spring where they will present their project to a panel of judges. For achieving National Finalist status, schools will receive $50,000 in technology and classroom materials.
• Five National Grand Prize-winning schools will receive $100,000 in technology and classroom materials, and a trip to Washington, D.C. to present their projects to members of Congress.
• Public voting will also determine one Community Choice winner from the pool of National Finalists, who will be eligible to win an additional $10,000 in Samsung technology.

In celebration of the 10th year of Solve for Tomorrow, Samsung expanded the program to award more schools and provide more resources – including increasing the prize pool by $1 million. Previously, the contest awarded 250 State Finalists – five schools from each state. This year, 50 additional schools have been named State Finalists, with at least five schools recognized as State Finalists in each state.**

Schools from across the U.S., from Alaska to Florida, answered the call for submissions in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest, including submissions from several academies for young women as well as a specialty school for the deaf and blind.

Since its inception in 2010, the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest has awarded $15 million in Samsung technology and classroom materials to more than 2,200 public schools in the United States.

For a full list of state finalist schools, please visit www.samsung.com/solve or follow on Instagram @SolveForTomorrow. For official rules and judging criteria, click here.

*$3 million prize is based on an estimated retail value.

**Includes all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Schools from Maryland and Washington, D.C. were eligible for the Maryland/D.C. State Finalist award.