Regional Innovation Jam Advances Student Teams to Statewide InventOR Competition

Economic Development for Central Oregon hosted the Central Oregon Regional Innovation Jam on Saturday, April 11, at Central Oregon Community College, bringing together students, recent alumni and community entrepreneurs for a day of hands-on innovation. The event was supported by Central Oregon Community College and Oregon State University-Cascades.

The Innovation Jam is a one-day design sprint, powered by Portland State University’s InventOR, where participants work in teams to develop physical prototypes that address real-world challenges. Throughout the day, teams moved from idea to prototype under the guidance of mentors from industry, education and the startup community. The event concluded with a pitch competition before a panel of judges.

Top teams were awarded cash prizes and earned the opportunity to advance to the statewide InventOR Finals Pitch Competition and Prototype Exhibition, taking place June 25-26 at Oregon State University-Cascades’ campus in Bend.

First place was awarded to Jared Messersmith, Hunter Erhard and Makani Hiltner of Tree Well Guardian from Oregon State University-Cascades, earning $500. Second place went to Christopher Miller and Dylan Johnson, representing Hog Squad from Oregon State University-Cascades, earning $300. Third place was awarded to Joseph Mazone and Hunter Hall of Team Solar from Central Oregon Community College, earning $200.

“What stood out was not where teams began, but how far they moved forward, leveraging Design‑Build tools to strengthen their ideas, their solutions and their pitches in an incredibly short time,” said Rita Hansen, EDCO Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship. “The Innovation Jam is designed to spark that momentum, and InventOR gives participants the runway to keep building, testing and pushing their ideas forward.”

Regional Innovation Jams serve as an entry point into InventOR, Oregon’s only statewide collegiate prototyping competition. Teams advancing to the finals will compete against peers from across the state for up to $30,000 in cash and prizes. The winner of InventOR will present at the 2026 Bend Venture Conference in October.

Since its founding in 2017, InventOR has grown into a statewide program connecting students from community colleges and universities with mentorship, funding and a platform to bring new ideas to life.

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