The Wicked Festival is an exposition of student problem solving hosted by the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences and supported by the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning (CITL), Citizen Leader, and the Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship.

The Wicked Festival was motivated by a CITL book group on Paul Hanstedt's book Creating Wicked Students: Designing Courses for a Complex World. The book inspired several important tenets of the festival: Students tackle wicked, complex, multi-dimensional public problems. Students find solutions. At the festival, students talk about their work with others, becoming the "authorities." At the Wicked Festival, students have used presentations, posters, and videos to start conversations about their problems and solutions.

Upon visiting the Radford Wicked Festival in Fall 2022, Dr. Hanstedt observed: “It is so impressive . . . I’ve never seen anything like it . . .. The way these students have engaged their ideas is truly an educational experience. The light in their eyes changes. They’re not just learning about themselves; they’re learning about what they are capable of accomplishing.”

We have found “wicked” teaching empowers students with the ability to define, research, and solve problems; oral presentation skills; confidence; toleration of ambiguity; collaboration, and understanding failure as part of the process to success.

We hope our wicked problem solvers will be in demand by employers. One of the key career readiness competencies identified by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) is critical thinking. Behaviors associated with critical thinking are, according to NACE: “solv[ing] problems using sound, inclusive reasoning and judgment.”