An organization, represented by a College Park Scholars alum, working to ensure surplus food doesn’t go to waste took one of the $10,000 top prizes at the University of Maryland’s 13th annual Do Good Challenge last week.
Four other finalists, including another Scholars alum, shared in another $20,000 in prize money awarded at the pitch competition, which drew more than 500 students, staff, faculty, and community members to the Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center to hear teams’ ideas about how to make the world a better place.
The UMD Chapter of the Food Recovery Network, represented by Life Sciences alum Kyle Zibell and teammate Sophia Li, claimed the top spot in the Leaders Track, for competitors in leadership or decision-making roles of existing organizations. Since 2018, the chapter—the first in the nation—has recovered more than 130,000 meals from on-campus dining halls and, in 2024 alone, collected more than 28,000 pounds of food, equivalent to 23,000 meals, with the help of more than 200 student volunteers. The chapter also partners with the Campus Pantry to support food-insecure students at UMD.
Second place in the Founders track went to Dare to Dream, which received $5,000. The organization started by Science, Technology and Society alum Takiyah Imani Roberts empowers underserved youth through entrepreneurial education, mentorship and funding; it has involved more than 500 students in its free programs over the last two and a half years. It was her second consecutive year advancing to the Do Good Challenge Finals.
Dare to Dream also won a $2,500 prize as the night's Audience Choice Award for Finalists winner in a text-to-vote contest.
Watch a replay of the 2025 Do Good Challenge Finals on YouTube.