Lone Star College Honors College students joined community college and university students from the U.S. and technical college and university students from Iraq and Jordan to solve global challenges in their communities during the recent Global Solutions Sustainability Challenge.

“Our team was chosen as one of five finalist teams to present at the Global Business Expo where they were responsible for presenting a three-minute “Shark Tank” like pitch and answer questions from global judges,” said Laura Taggett, LSC-CyFair Professor of English and International Faculty Fellow. “Our students came in second place and were voted Audience Favorite at the expo.”

Students from LSC-CyFair, LSC-Kingwood, LSC-Montgomery and LSC-Tomball partnered with students from Al Baqua Applied University in Jordan to address the high cost of schoolbooks by developing “OurLib”, a prototype website for students to sell their used textbooks to other students at a reduced rate, earning them credits to purchase or rent other books.

“This conference provided Lone Star College students with the opportunity to develop job readiness skills through online collaboration working with others around the world,” said Katharine Caruso, Ph.D., Associate Vice Chancellor, Honors and International Education. “Their success is not only a testament to their hard work, but the tremendous support they receive from our faculty and staff.”

The students are enrolled in the LSC Honors College which offers a wide range of opportunities for honors students, from incoming freshman wanting to graduate with an Honors AA or Honors AS degree, to high-achieving students seeking to graduate with Honors distinction, to students interested in earning individual honors course credit.

“This accomplishment was entirely student-led and generated, and I am grateful for the chance to be involved in this project and with students who are so remarkable and inspiring,” said Taggett.

LSC Honors College graduates have gone on to transfer to top institutions including Columbia University, Cornell University, Duke University, Texas A&M University, University of Texas and Vanderbilt University.

“This global competition is only one component of our comprehensive international education programming,” said Caruso. "Lone Star College Honors College students have participated in the National Model United Nations program, taken advantage of study abroad opportunities, internationalized courses, and an International Studies areas of concentration.”

The challenge is funded by the Stevens Initiative, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, with funding provided by the U.S. Government and is administered by the Aspen Institute. The LSC team was awarded $1,500 to further their concept or promote their solution.

Lone Star College Honors College students along with students from Iraq and Jordan competed to solve global challenges in their communities during the recent Global Solutions Sustainability Challenge. Pictured is a screen shot of the students who came in second place and were voted Audience Favorite.

Lone Star College offers high-quality, low-cost academic transfer and career training education to 93,000+ students each semester. LSC is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to support student success. Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., serves as chancellor of LSC, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area and has been named a 2021 Great Colleges to Work For® institution by the Chronicle of Higher Education and ranked 35^th in Texas in the Forbes ‘America’s Best Employers By State’ list. LSC consists of seven colleges, seven centers, eight Workforce Centers of Excellence, Lone Star Corporate College and LSC-Online. To learn more, visit LoneStar.edu.