Register for IFBG 2021 now!

IdeaFestival Bowling Green 2021

Online February 17

Re-start, Re-think, Re-imagine.

Registration is open!

Click on the button above to register.

Registration Info

Tickets are $8 per person; adults attending with students are free.

There is no limit on the number of participants who can register.

All participants must register and pay before the festival.

Payment is due February 8.

Registration will close on February 8.

Get ready for a half-day of innovation and creativity that connects all participants and provides insider access to the places where ideas come alive.

Participants will directly contribute to the festival in real time.

Ask questions to speakers!
Submit your creations to activity creators!
Virtually visit labs, studios, and workspaces!
Be selected to be live on screen during an activity session!

For more information on how an online version of IFBG will work,
check out our FAQ page.

If you have additional questions, contact erika.solberg@wku.edu.

2021 Speakers

Frankie Lewis

Designer, Frankie Lew Organization

frankielew.com

Frankie Lewis was born and raised in Louisville. In 2014, after receiving her BS in theater arts from the University of Louisville, she started her first fashion label, Ann DeEvelyn Clothing Company. Her work was featured in EXTOL Magazine, Louisville Magazine, and KMAC COUTURE – Art Walks the Runway, and was mentioned in British and Italian Vogue. In 2018, Frankie was selected to compete with 15 other designers on season 17 of Project Runway. She currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California, as a freelance tailor for Michael Schmidt’s Studios and as owner of the Frankie Lew fashion house.

Amy Samples

Director of Community Outreach and Peoples Programs, AppHarvest

AppHarvest.com

Amy Samples is helping assemble the world-class, 285-person team responsible for operations at AppHarvest's 60-acre indoor farm in Morehead. In her role, Amy has been instrumental in helping unite community organizations, universities, and government officials at all levels to create an AgTech ecosystem that will cement Eastern Kentucky's status as America's AgTech capital. A Kentucky native, Amy joined AppHarvest following years with The Nature Conservancy in and around the nation's capital, as well as with land-focused non-profits in Michigan.

Janessa Unseld

Finalist, Breakthrough Junior Challenge

breakthroughjuniorchallenge.org

Janessa Unseld is a senior and community developer at The Gatton Academy for Mathematics and Science in Kentucky. Her love for exploring diverse perspectives has led her to many an extracurricular, including sitting on her school's literary magazine editorial board, engaging in her local philosophy club, and cofounding Project Unite, a group focused on promoting cultural awareness. She feels that anything worth articulating is worth articulating well, and thus always works to develop her communication skills. A three-minute video she created exemplifies this attitude: it details the practical limitations of quantum computers and is now a finalist in the 2020 Breakthrough Junior Challenge.

2021 Minds-on, Hands-on Activities
(yes! even though we'll be virtual!)

Art

with Andee Rudloff

and

Brianna Harlan

Geology

with Dr. Shelby Rader

Biology

Writing

Automotive engineering

Now in our eighth year, IdeaFestival Bowling Green is an annual one-day celebration of ideas and imagination designed to inspire the next generation of creators, thinkers, and innovators. Hosted by The Center for Gifted Studies at WKU since 2014 and created in cooperation with the original IdeaFestival® in Louisville, our event brings passionate and motivated middle and high school students and interested community members from throughout the region to the WKU campus for a morning of speaker sessions and an afternoon of minds-on, hands-on activities. The whole day highlights innovation, curiosity, entrepreneurship, community engagement, and creativity across a variety of fields.

IdeaFestival Bowling Green: just imagine the ideas that will transform the future of our region.

IdeaFestival Bowling Green 2021 Sponsors

Major Sponsor

At AT&T, we’re bringing it all together. We deliver advanced mobile services, next-generation TV, high-speed internet and smart solutions for people and businesses. That’s why we’re investing to be a global leader in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications industry.

Contributing Sponsors

Vid Monster Productions is a full-service creative content production company, specializing in video, graphic design, livestream, photo, and audio. With a core team of nine and over a dozen production specialists, Vid Monster consistently delivers in or under budget, and on or before the deadline for clients. Because of their 50+ combined years of experience, the team is passionate about and obsessed with creating each project creatively and uniquely.

The Gatton Acadeny
The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science in Kentucky is a residential program for bright, highly motivated Kentucky high school students who have demonstrated interest in pursuing advanced careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Housed on the campus of Western Kentucky University, students take college classes, engage in faculty-led research, and have the ability to study abroad while living in a supportive community of like-minded peers.
In short, students in Kentucky can apply for our program during their sophomore year of high school, and if accepted, they will spend their junior and senior year on WKU’s main campus while remaining enrolled in their sending school. Furthermore, the tuition, meals and housing costs for our students are covered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, so any student in the state is eligible to apply if the program meets their interests and abilities.
Interested in learning more about The Gatton Academy’s application process? Visit us at https://www.wku.edu/academy/admissions/instructions/index.php.

What is IdeaFestival Bowling Green? Watch below!
Video courtesy of Vid Monster Productions.

Read what participants said about IdeaFestival Bowling Green 2020:

It was one of the best field trips I've ever had!
The topics were intriguing and got me thinking about what should happen in the future.
We loved that there were so many ideas represented from so many different disciplines.
The speakers were all very excited to be speaking with us which led me to feel like we were an important audience.
I really enjoyed painting the huge mural. I felt in the moment and focused on looking at the product afterward, and seeing it come together felt nice, especially knowing it couldn’t happen without all the different people coming together.
It was super fun. I want to go next time too!