Highland Park Student Wins Illinois Title In Presidential AI Challenge

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — An Edgewood Middle School eighth grader has been named Illinois State Champion in Track 2 of the Presidential AI Challenge, North Shore School District 112 announced.

Luc Sever earned the recognition for “Personalized News,” a chatbot designed to help users find news stories based on their interests and reading level.

The national challenge invites students to use artificial intelligence to address real-world problems. In Track 2, students are asked to build and demonstrate a working solution.

Luc's project grew from a question he wanted to solve about how news could feel more relevant and accessible to younger readers. Using PlayLab AI, Luc built a tool that starts by asking users about their interests, hobbies, age and preferred reading level, according to the district.

The chatbot then recommends news stories that may be a better fit for that person. Users can keep exploring similar topics, which allows the tool to continue refining its recommendations.

“Luc saw a real problem and built something thoughtful to address it,” Superintendent Michael Lubelfeld said. “What stands out is not only that he created a working tool, but that he kept improving it, worked through setbacks, and paid attention to how it should be built responsibly.”

The project took repeated troubleshooting as Luc refined the system, according to the district. Early versions of the chatbot did not work consistently, and he made adjustments to improve how it matched stories to user interests. He also expanded the logic so the tool could respond more accurately to a wider range of answers.

The district said Luc also built safeguards into the project. The chatbot includes source attribution so users can see where stories come from, and data privacy was part of the design from the beginning.

Luc's Illinois title now advances him to the regional level of the Presidential AI Challenge, where he will have the opportunity to compete for a chance to move on to the national stage.

“This is a terrific accomplishment for Luc and for Edgewood,” Lubelfeld said. “It shows the kind of meaningful work students can do when they are given the chance to solve relevant problems and create something original.”