2026 Award Recipient
IlanaZimmerman
Project Adaptive Tech Club
Project Adaptive Tech Club
Ilana is the founder of the Adaptive Tech Club (ATC), which builds and adapts free assistive technology for children with disabilities.
Early in sophomore year of high school, Ilana joined the robotics team. An occupational therapist approached Ilana with a challenge: could their technical skills be put to work for kids with disabilities? Ilana said yes—and then went far beyond what anyone expected. Over the following year, they adapted over 100 toys and built custom devices for the occupational therapist’s students, including a ride-on car rewired with large buttons and a safety harness for a child with cerebral palsy, who was able to control his own movement for the first time. From there, Ilana started the Adaptive Tech Club to create a pathway for other students to join in creating transformative devices.
ATC meets weekly to adapt toys and build custom assistive technology based on specific requests from occupational therapists, school districts, and child service organizations who know students’ needs firsthand. The results range from adapted toy cars and accessible gaming controllers to a custom bidet with foot pedals built for a 12-year-old without arms. Everything is offered for free.
What began as Ilana working alone grew into a club with more than 80 volunteers. Together, they have adapted hundreds of toys and raised nearly $16,000. ATC has served the Oakland, San Francisco, and El Dorado Hills school districts.
A project that builds and adapts free assistive technology and toys for children with disabilities, using engineering skills in service of inclusion and joy.
