Innovation was in the air and the room buzzed with excitement as CSUN’s Global HSI Equity Innovation Hub launched its inaugural “Culture is Currency” national STEAM innovation challenge on Oct. 20. Hundreds of students from local high schools packed the Plaza del Sol Performance Hall and many more across the nation watched via livestream, as five college students and learners pitched their business ideas on stage to a panel of coaches. Each pitch harnessed their cultural knowledge to address an issue in their community, from preserving and passing on family recipes to promoting financial literacy and savings among students.
Organizers said they hoped the pitch demonstrations would inspire many other innovators across the country — from K-12 students and educators, college students and recent grads, to other community members — to participate in the innovation challenge, which is accepting submissions until Jan. 29, 2027. The national challenge includes participants at 18 Hispanic-serving institutions (HSI) across seven states, including California, Arizona, Texas, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico and Florida.
At the Oct. 20 kickoff, pop star Becky G thrilled the CSUN crowd with a surprise guest appearance and helped celebrate the challenge launch, where she shared words of encouragement.
“I’m so proud to be Latina. I’m so proud to be a California girl, born and raised in Inglewood, and more specifically, a proud Chicana — a proud Mexican American who has lived her life in a space of duality from the beginning,” she said. “Innovation is in our blood, it is in our nature. Everything that you need moving forward is already within you, don’t ever forget that. … You can do this – I believe in you. I can’t wait to hear your pitches!”
The challenge invites learners to recognize culture, creativity, lived experiences, talents, and family and community knowledge as assets for innovation.
At the kickoff event, five college students and learners pitched their ideas on stage in a “live pitch lab,” sharing their ideas as works in progress and seeking feedback from industry professionals. The “innovation coaches” represented leadership at industry partners Apple, Wells Fargo and SUMA Wealth, as well as alumnus and CSUN Foundation Board Chair Robert Taylor ’82, Hon.D. ’24, founding partner and CEO of Centinela Capital Partners, LLC.
Kevin Rojas, a CSUN junior and mechanical engineering major, pitched his idea for “TableRoots,” an app designed to capture, preserve and share cherished family recipes from different cultures — especially those that may live only in parents’ and grandparents’ memories, with no measurements or instructions written down.
“Food is something we all have in common,” Rojas said. “I wondered, what happens to our family recipes? How can I prevent culture and tradition from disappearing? … I want TableRoots to be more than just another cooking app — I want it to be a place where recipes and the stories behind them live on.”
Aaliyah Bridewell, also a mechanical engineering major at CSUN, pitched her platform, “Money Dares: Culture is Currency,” to promote financial literacy and confidence for Gen Z and future generations. The tool suggests monthly “little dares,” such as choosing “one thing you want to save for,” Bridewell said. Her long-term goal for the platform, Bridewell said, is to develop a school curriculum that could include learning about saving for retirement and investing.
“I want students to feel capable with money, whatever amount they start with,” she said. “You don’t have to know everything or have a lot of money to begin. … I want students to have a safe space to practice without feeling embarrassed about what they don’t know.”
Amanda Quintero, equity innovation officer for the hub, said the innovation challenge is already helping participants use their own intellect, experiences and technology to strengthen community entrepreneurship, preserve cultural knowledge and turn “what they already carry into new forms of value, opportunity and community wealth.” Quintero moderated the kickoff event, alongside Veronica Montoya, senior director of HSI national initiatives for the hub.
“The national STEAM innovation challenge is built around one powerful idea: Innovation belongs to the people,” Quintero told the audience. “It’s your culture, it’s your creativity, it’s your lived experiences, the knowledge that gets passed down from your families and your communities. All of these things have value.”
The innovation challenge will culminate with showcases across the country, and challenge finalists will be announced during the hub’s fourth annual convening, “Innovation Belongs to the People: Where Community Shapes the Future,” from Feb. 27-28, 2027, hosted with Miami Dade College in Miami.
To participate and learn more, visit https://www.hsiequityinnovationhub.org/national-steam-innovation-challenge.
