By Sidney Davis – Communications Manager, MS-CC
When we come together with a shared purpose, incredible things happen. That’s exactly what happened at the MS-CC Hackathon hosted at Fort Valley State University, where participants brought their passion, creativity, and commitment to solving real-world challenges. Hackathon participant Bridgette Clarke shares her experience:
A Journey of Growth
I was inspired to participate in the MS-CC Hackathon at Fort Valley State because I had previously participated in the MS-CC 2025 Annual Meeting Hackathon in Nashville. That first experience significantly boosted my technical skills, such as building a carbon footprint calculator, and strengthened my collaboration, networking, and communication skills. It also helped me grow as a person and improve my confidence overall. What inspired me even more was knowing that I could push myself further. This time, I was able to apply AI to predict goat health, which allowed me to gain even more technical experience and continue learning new things while growing both personally and academically.
One of the main real-world challenges we addressed was goat health, particularly in rural farming communities such as Fort Valley, Georgia. On farms, goats can be affected by parasites based on the type of grass or food they consume. The challenge was figuring out how to predict goat health using AI. Being able to predict goat health and understand the causes behind it can help farmers better manage their livestock, reduce the spread of parasites, and improve overall goat health. This can also help farms stay organized and give local stores better access to healthier products. In a rural area like Fort Valley, where farming is a big part of the community, this type of solution can make a real impact.
From this experience, the biggest lesson I learned about teamwork was the importance of communication. The way you communicate and how efficiently you do so can really affect your project and how well you work as a team. My team communicated well, even though some members spoke different first languages and their English was not always fluent. We worked through those challenges and made sure everyone understood and felt included. Because of that, everyone had a voice, and we successfully built a project we were all passionate about.
Stories like this remind us why we do what we do at MS-CC. Every hackathon, every collaboration, every challenge overcome brings us closer to our shared vision of progress and possibility. To everyone who participated at Fort Valley State University: thank you for showing up, leaning in, and building something greater than yourselves.
Is your university interested in hosting a Hackathon? Please contact Alexia Jones, MS-CC, Senior Program Manager at ajones@internet2.edu.
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