Projects

What teams have built

Real problems brought by local partners, the teams who worked them, and what changed for the people who live them.

Projects

Partners

Students

Faculty

University Innovation Fellows (UIF) - 1st Annual NIC X-Labs Project

The North Idaho College Innovation Fellows (August 2025–March 2026) used human-centered design thinking to transform the siloed MyNIC platform into a searchable, two-way communication hub. By collaborating with industry partners via an AI Think Tank, the team co-designed the March 7 AI Hackathon to bridge the gap between classroom learning and durable workforce skills.

What changed

Over 25 local industry partners joined for the AI for Industry Think Tank and/or the AI Hackathon. Lobbycast TV provided lunch for the AI Hackathon. More than 60 people participated in the March 7th AI Hackathon, including high school students, college students, community members, and employers. Information from these events is helping inform upcoming NIC courses, such as AI for Everyone.

Partner

X-Labs

Team

3 people

Term

2025-26 Year-Long

AI Literacy / Communication

TypeAll Workforce Innovation Community Impact Technology Research Design & Media

StageAll Completed Active

Summer 2026

ResearchActive

OpenET Data Integration

Pulling OpenET data from an API (using Python) and analyzing it against precipitation for agriculture and water budgeting.

Energy-Water Systems

Sandpoint Organic Agriculture Center

2 students · 0 faculty

ResearchActive

Satellite Imagery Analysis for Harmful Algal Blooms

Collecting algal samples on Lake CDA and comparing the data with Sentinel-II satellite imagery of the lake.

Energy-Water Systems

Idaho Water Resources Research Institute (IWRRI)

1 student · 0 faculty

Spring 2026

TechnologyCompleted

Project ARISE

Automated the 3D scanning/QA process for aerospace manufacturing using 3D printed grippers and a StandardBot cobot.

Aerospace

ATC

3 students · 0 faculty

ResearchCompleted

NAICS Industry Ecosystem Mapping

Automatically logged and displayed upstream and downstream industries in Idaho based on standard NAICS codes, using AI LLMs and Power BI.

Idaho Industry

TechHelp

1 student · 0 faculty

ResearchCompleted

PowerWorld AI

Tested different grid conditions in the PowerWorld simulator for eventual AI testing and control.

Power Grid

UI Advanced Energy Institute

1 student · 0 faculty

Design & MediaCompleted

CIIR Marketing - Student Spotlights

Highlighted student stories and impact through video interviews and LinkedIn posts at the Center for Intelligent Industrial Robotics. Also counted for the NIC internship class.

Marketing

CIIR

1 student · 0 faculty

Fall 2025

Community ImpactCompleted

AI Workshops

Students, faculty, and staff planned and ran two CDA Library AI workshops for community members. Hosted at the library, the sessions addressed the questions — What is AI? How does AI work? — and explored AI in real life.

AI Literacy

Coeur d'Alene Public Library

0 students · 0 faculty

TechnologyCompleted

Raspberry Pi Network Testing

Caleb built a complete Raspberry Pi testbed to evaluate network performance over the NILE system under multiple conditions, including using a ROS2 driver.

Network Performance

NILE Secure

1 student · 0 faculty

TechnologyCompleted

SCARECRO Dashboard

Walter built a dashboard to display maps and graphs of wirelessly sensed data from Laurel Grove Wine Farm, including temperature, humidity, rainfall, and soil moisture/pH.

Data Visualization

Laurel Grove Wine Farm

1 student · 0 faculty