Nittany Locator

Nittany Locator is a mobile application designed to address the fragmented lost-and-found infrastructure at Penn State's University Park campus. As part of a five-person team, I contributed to this project during HackPSU Fall 2022, where we earned 3rd place in the Nittany AI Challenge.

The core concept centers on creating a self-sustaining cycle: first helping users locate their lost items through a centralized, AI-powered system, and if the item remains unrecovered, connecting them with students reselling similar items. This approach reduces on-campus waste while fostering a culture of resourcefulness within the student community.

Penn State's University Park campus spans 7,958 acres and serves over 45,000 students — a number that grows significantly when factoring in faculty, staff, and visitors. At this scale, losing and recovering personal belongings becomes a considerable challenge, compounded by several systemic gaps in the current infrastructure.

Lost-and-found centers are distributed unevenly across campus, and the only way to check item availability is by calling or visiting each location in person. This fragmented process introduces significant friction: a single miscommunication during a phone inquiry — such as an inaccurate item description — can permanently eliminate a student's chance of recovering their belongings.

On the reporting side, students who find lost items are often deterred from submitting them due to the time and effort required to locate and register with a center. As a result, many recoverable items are discarded or go unclaimed. While some eventually reach donation centers, a meaningful portion is wasted despite remaining useful to others.

1. Establish a centralized, university-wide lost-and-found platform that consolidates item reporting and retrieval into a single digital experience.

2. Reduce on-campus waste by connecting students in need with available items that would otherwise go unused.

3. Strengthen community values by creating systems that recognize and encourage acts of goodwill among students.

4. Leverage AI image classification to simplify and standardize the item submission and matching process.

The Nittany Locator team placed 3rd in the Nittany AI Challenge at HackPSU Fall 2022. The project was recognized for its practical application of AI technology to a real, campus-wide student pain point.

Security & Verification

• The item ownership verification process requires a more robust design to prevent fraudulent claims. A future solution might incorporate photo-based proof of ownership or identity verification at the point of retrieval.

Incentive System

• • To drive long-term engagement and encourage students to submit found items, a reward mechanism tied to tangible student needs — such as dining credits or campus discounts — could directly reinforce the positive behaviors the platform depends on.