The Ignite Makers Program is a free program that runs from September through April each year for high school students. This program challenges students to use Human-Centered and Engineering Design processes to research problems related to the UN Global Goals of Clean Energy (Light Team), Clean Water (Water Team), or Good Health (Health Team).
Students meet weekly with their Duke undergraduate mentors both via Zoom and at Duke to identify a problem, brainstorm a solution, prototype designs, and test solutions. Each year, Makers present their final projects at "Duke Day," a Science Fair-style Conference on Duke University's campus. Examples of previous Makers' prototypes can be found below.
Our application for our 2025-2026 Maker cohort is now open! Applications close July 15th, 11:59p. Apply here.