Univ. of Chicago IOP Urban-Rural Policy Challenge

This is a national contest facilitated by the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. Learn more about the IOP and their programming by visiting their website.

About the Contest

While politically divided, rural and urban areas both struggle with healthcare, childcare and food access; an ongoing opioid crisis, and often, economic disinvestment. While the policy challenges are overlapping in rural and urban areas, policy solutions are often not. Lawmakers and nongovernmental organizations often draft policy that does not account for differences in population density, infrastructure, local government resources, and access to capital that divide urban and rural regions, preventing statewide policies that work for all. Acting as state lawmakers or a nongovernmental organization, each team will develop a plan to address a single policy area that benefits both rural and urban communities in Kansas.

Submission Requirements

Your team can expand, adjust and improve upon existing grants or programs by identifying what the existing policy is, clearly identifying the imbalance in how that policy is experiences across urban and rural regions and explaining how you will solve that. Or you may create something completely new!

In each case, you must cite a funding source and comply with local and federal regulatory structures and laws within the state of Kansas. These proposals must be summarized within two (2) pages and utilize the mandatory formats found here.

Your proposal must focus on one of the following policy areas:

• Broadband expansion
• Childcare access
• Food insecurity
• Healthcare access
• Hyper-local economic development
• Substance use disorder

Contest Eligibility

This contest is open to undergraduate students at the University of Kansas. No prior policy background or coursework is required for participation. Students will compete in teams of two (2) to five (5) participants and present proposals to a panel of experts.

To help refine proposals, participants are encouraged to meet with provided mentors during their office hours. Participating in office hours is highly encouraged—past policy challenge winners frequently worked with mentors to refine their ideas.

Additional Information

The following resources may be helpful to you as you begin to develop your policy proposal.

Key Dates & Deadlines

Below is a tentative timeline for this contest that includes all of the relevant information that is required at each step of this competition. If you have questions about anything in particular, please reach out to us at dolesab@ku.edu.

• Oct. 22 – Zoom Information Session | Attend an information session on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 4 p.m. to answer any questions you may have. This is optional and no registration is required. Click here to join the session with the password DIOP2024!
• Nov. 5 – Registration Deadline | Register for your team’s participation by Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 11:59 p.m. Only 15 teams will be selected to participate. Not all teams who register may make it to the first round of the competition, with mentors and judges helping ensure the strongest proposals make it to the Pitch Mixer.
• Week of Nov. 11 – Office Hours | Mentors will be available for optional office hours by appointment for you and your team to participate in.
• Nov. 17 – Proposals Due | Submit your team’s proposal to an online portal by Sunday, Nov. 17 at 11:59 p.m.
• Dec. 1 – Pitch Mixer Slide Deck Due | Share your team’s slide deck (optional) with the Dole Institute Staff at least 24 hours ahead of the Pitch Mixer.
• Dec. 3 – Attend & Present at Pitch Mixer | Attend and present at the pitch mixer on December 3 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. After the mixer, three final teams will be named.
• Dec. 6 – Finalist Presentations | Named finalists will present their proposals on December 6 from 2 to 3 p.m. After these presentations, one winning team will be named.