San Ramon Students Win $5,000 Each For Ideas Spanning Sports, Tech And Culture

India-West News Desk

SAN RAMON, CA – Three San Ramon high school students have each won $5,000 for their original event ideas in Discover San Ramon’s second annual Event Innovator Competition.

Neil Korambeth of California High School, Aditi Ranjan and Chloe Fisher of Dougherty Valley High School were recognized by Mayor Mark Armstrong and the San Ramon City Council during a special presentation September 8.

Korambeth’s winning idea is the San Ramon Sky-Track Grand Prix, Ranjan proposed San Ramon RoboFest, and Fisher developed the San Ramon Cherry Blossom Festival.

The competition invited students in grades 9-11 who live in San Ramon or attend a high school in the city to develop and pitch ideas for new community events. Participation tripled from the first year, with the three students selected by the Discover San Ramon board and judging panel. Each received a $5,000 award, for a total of $15,000.

Ranjan said RoboFest gave her a chance to bring together her interests in STEM and entrepreneurship while developing an idea for the community.

Fisher said she came up with the cherry blossom festival after noticing people parking dangerously along Bollinger Canyon Road to take pictures of the blooming trees. She said the competition helped her think of a creative way to address the problem and improve safety.

Korambeth said he wanted to develop an event that could be unique to San Ramon. His concept uses the city’s architecture as the setting for a sports event designed to showcase the city.

The three winning concepts cover technology, culture and sports, offering different ideas for new events in San Ramon.

The Event Innovator Competition is scheduled to return in 2027, with details about the next application period to be announced.