KC founder’s hip hop edtech app for children, families earns earns $50K in 5G innovation competition

A grants program focused on boosting social entrepreneurs — traditionally underfunded women and persons of color — who are using 5G wireless innovation to address pressing community challenges this week awarded a $50,000 prize to Kansas City startup Healthy Hip Hop for its work on child literacy.

Catalyst — a competitive grants initiative by the Washington, DC-based CTIA Wireless Foundation — recognized founder Roy Scott and Healthy Hip Hop for the startup’s innovative, mobile app-based solution, which is helping improve students’ reading and writing skills through the engaging power of hip hop music.

Roy Scott, Healthy Hip Hop, is pictured with young people during a photo shoot for the Catalyst grants program; photo courtesy of Catalyst, CTIA Wireless Foundation

“According to the U.S. Department of Education, two-thirds of students in the U.S. are reading below grade level by fourth grade. However, many can repeat their favorite song lyrics with ease,” Catalyst said in a release about the award. “Healthy Hip Hop founder Roy Scott was inspired by his own lived experience and his passion for music to create an educational solution that resonates with students and uplifts youth in a culturally responsive way.”

Grant winners were expected to be honored Thursday at a reception in the nation’s capital.

Healthy Hip Hop has a storied history in and outside Kansas City, having journeyed through such programs as the Regnier Venture Creation Challenge at UMKC, and multiple LEANLAB and LaunchKC cohorts, St. Louis’ Arch Grants program, Techstars Atlanta, and Google’s Black Founders Fund.

It even earned a Changemaker Award at the 2023 AltCap Your Biz competition.

Click here to learn more about Healthy Hip Hop’s origins.

Catalyst is in the fifth year as the CTIA Wireless Foundation’s signature initiative.

Committed to supporting social entrepreneurs that may face barriers to accessing capital, the program’s awardees are led by a member/members of the Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, and more than 60 percent of the organizations are led by a person whose gender identity is female.

Watch a video about Healthy Hip Hop below, then keep reading for more winners.

In addition to Healthy Hip Hop, winners included:

• UPchieve, Brooklyn, New York ($100,000) — A mobile app that provides free tutoring and college counseling to low-income students, available 24/7.
• Maro, Bozeman, Montana ($50,000) — A mobile app for parents that works across school, home and clinic to support the early intervention and risk detection of mental health issues in students age 7 to 18.
• Palmplug, Seattle ($10,000) — A computer hardware manufacturing company that creates multi-sensory wearables that enhance human interaction; combining hand tracking, haptic feedback, and visual cues to deliver immersive experiences for applications looking to go beyond the screen.
• Patientory, Atlanta ($10,000) — A Web3 innovative app where healthy choices earn users $PTOY crypto rewards, making health a game they actually want to play.

“These social entrepreneurs are creating mobile-first solutions that take advantage of the speed and efficiency of wireless to address issues across education equality, child literacy, and youth mental health,” said Dori Kreiger, executive director of CTIA Wireless Foundation.

Backers of the grants program include: Qualcomm, iconectiv, AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP, American Tower, Assurant, DLA Piper, Ellipsis Productions and Wiley Rein.