New Haven Civic Innovation Prize
The New Haven Civic Innovation Prize awards up to $25,000 to the best student- or community-led venture or project focused on benefiting the City of New Haven.
The Prize aims to catalyze student- and community-led innovations that address, and are informed by, community priorities. Community members, students, or teams of students and community members who are working on projects in key areas of community development are welcome to apply.
The competition provides participants with constructive feedback from experienced professionals, mentorship from relevant experts, and chances to meet social entrepreneurs and civic leaders. The judges will award a total of $25,000 in prizes and may elect to allocate the prize amount to a single winner, or between two teams.
Application Selection & Judging Criteria
- Opportunity: The problem the venture/organization/idea seeks to address is clearly defined, and there is evidence that there is a target population who considers it important.
- Viability: The team has developed a clear solution to the problem, has a realistic path for getting the solution to the end user, and can continue to deliver the solution in a way that is financially and operationally sustainable. In short, the idea seems like it could work.
- Innovation: The idea is truly innovative. It presents a new model, product or service that fills a unique gap and/or applies an existing model to a new context.
- Team: The team has the knowledge, skills, passion, energy and ability to execute.
- Catalytic-ness: The prize will be meaningful in driving the team/project forward in ways that may otherwise not have been possible as quickly or at all.
- Impact: The project addresses key areas of community development.
Important Dates
January 20, 2026: Startup Yale Application Fest
February 2, 2026: Startup Yale application opens
February 12, 2026 at 5:00 pm EST: Startup Yale application deadline
March 6, 2026: Finalist announced.
April 10, 2026: Finalists participate in a live pitch event as part of Startup Yale.
Contact
Johnny Scafidi
Director of Community Outreach and Engagement
johnny.scafidi@yale.edu
2026 WINNERS:
Grand Prize Winner: Revenue Cycle
New Haven Civic Innovation 2nd Prize Winner: Pearl CT
New Haven Civic Innovation 3rd Prize Winner: QuarterMill
Audience Choice Winner: PathConnect
Finalists
Past Winners
- 2026 Grand Prize Winner: Revenue Cycle; New Haven Civic Innovation 2nd Prize Winner: Pearl CT; New Haven Civic Innovation 3rd Prize Winner: QuarterMill; Audience Choice Winner: PathConnect
- 2023 winner: The Key Bookstore
- 2022 winners: Healing by Growing Farms and Inspired Communities, Inc.
- 2021 winners: were Project Lighten Up and LawText.
- 2020 winners: The inaugural New Haven Civic Innovation Prize was managed by the Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking at Yale and were awarded to Havenly Treats and DreamKit in 2020.
