Share in a $10,000 prize pool for your policy proposal and gain practical presentation and analysis experience.
Each year, all Lake Forest College students are invited to participate in the Public Policy Analysis Challenge. This interdisciplinary competition challenges teams of students to develop policy recommendations based on the competition's theme, which changes year-to-year.
What it takes to win:
- Students form teams of two or three people
- Each team works with a faculty or staff mentor
- Teams critically analyze issues and propose actionable solutions
- Students work together to create an evidence-based policy proposal
- Students develop a white paper and present to issue-area experts and policy practitioners
- A panel of judges determines the winner based on presentations and white papers
- The top three teams split $10,000 in prize money
Addressing Addiction
The theme of the 2024-2025 Public Policy Analysis Challenge is "Addressing Addiction," which encompasses substance use disorders, social media addiction, compulsive gambling, video game addiction, and many other important issues. We invite our students to apply an interdisciplinary approach to develop rigorous, evidence-based policy proposals directed at the local, state, national, or international level of governance, which will be evaluated by a team of external experts.
Why participate in the Public Policy Analysis Challenge?
The Public Policy Analysis Challenge provides students with the opportunity to practice policy in an exciting applied context. Students gain hands-on experience throughout the competition process while benefitting from tailored mentorship.
Throughout the process, students practice:
- Analytic skills
- Writing
- Speaking and presentation skills
- Teamwork
Past finalists reflect on their experience
Participating in the Public Policy Analysis Challenge was a valuable opportunity to collaborate with our faculty advisor, Professor Caparelli, and various experts in public policy. More than just an assignment, it was a creative and engaging experience that pushed us out of our comfort zone. We highly recommend it to students, as it allows them to take a topic they are passionate about and turn it into something meaningful to benefit our communities.
– Astrid Castro '26 and Isabella Tello '26
“
I am just not ready to part ways with my groupmates. I thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with my teammates, crafting our proposed policy through interviews, research, and data analysis.
Loreto Galvan-Alva ’25, 2023-2024 Challenge winner
Previous Challenges
Contact Us
Danielle Cohen
Instructor in Politics and History
Coordinator of Public Policy
Brown Hall 327
dcohen@lakeforest.edu
Robert Lemke
Morten Professor of Public Policy
Department of Economics
Brown Hall 418
847-735-5143
lemke@lakeforest.edu