Foundit

Seneca Campus Lost & Found System

A centralized digital platform that helps Seneca students recover lost items faster and with less confusion.

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Problem Statement
• Solution
• Features
• Tech Stack
• Project Structure
• Getting Started
• Team
• Contributing
• License

Overview

Foundit is a web platform for Seneca Polytechnic that lets students report, browse, and match lost and found items across campus. It replaces fragmented manual processes with a single, searchable system.

Background

Seneca is a large campus with multiple buildings and shared spaces, which increases the likelihood of lost items. Today, students often rely on:

• Manual processes through campus security
• Unofficial group chats and social media

These approaches are fragmented, time-consuming, and often ineffective.

Problem Statement

There is no centralized, accessible system for reporting and searching lost and found items at Seneca Polytechnic.

Who is Affected?

• Students — lose valuable or essential items such as student IDs, headphones, and water bottles
• Campus Security — faces increased manual workload managing lost items
• Campus Community — experiences frustration and inefficiency in item recovery

Reference: Seneca Service Hub - Lost and Found

Solution

A web-based platform that provides:

• Centralized item reporting and searching
• Improved speed and success rate of item recovery
• Reduced confusion and reliance on informal methods
• Efficient matching between lost and found items

Features

Core

• Item Posting — Report lost or found items with detailed descriptions
• Search & Filter — Find items quickly with advanced search
• Item Status Tracking — Real-time updates on item status
• User Authentication — Secure login for students, security staff, and admins
• Database Management — Robust backend for storing item and claim data

Advanced

• Semi-Automated Matching — Suggestions to link lost claims with found items
• Gratitude Wall — Share success stories and express thanks
• Content Moderation — Report inappropriate content
• Performance Optimization — Fast, reliable system behavior
• Responsive Design — Mobile-friendly interface

Tech Stack

Layer	Technologies
Frontend	Next.js, React, Chakra UI, TypeScript
Backend	Express, TypeScript, Prisma
Database	PostgreSQL (Docker)
Auth	JWT (access + refresh tokens)
Email	Nodemailer (SMTP)

Project Structure

Foundit/
├── foundit-ui/     # Next.js frontend
├── backend/        # Express API + Prisma
├── database/       # Docker Compose for PostgreSQL + pgAdmin
└── README.md

For deeper documentation, see:

• Backend setup & API
• Database setup & schema

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js 22+
• pnpm 11+
• Docker (for PostgreSQL)

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/86unj/Foundit.git
cd Foundit

2. Start the database

cd database
docker compose up -d

3. Set up the backend

cd backend
pnpm install
cp .env.example .env

Edit .env with your database URL, JWT secrets, and SMTP settings. See backend/README.md for details.

Apply migrations and seed data:

pnpm exec prisma migrate dev
NODE_ENV=development pnpm exec prisma db seed

Start the API server:

pnpm run dev

The backend runs at http://localhost:3001. Verify with:

curl http://localhost:3001/api/health

4. Set up the frontend

In a new terminal:

cd foundit-ui
pnpm install
cp .env.example .env   # if present
pnpm run dev

The frontend runs at http://localhost:3000.

Team

Role	Name
Project Manager	Yunjeong Choi
Front-End Developer	Shu-Ting Hsu
Back-End Developer	Rendell Velasco
UI/UX Designer	Hsiao-Kang Chang
Database & Documentation Lead	Hansol Nam

Contributing

This project is maintained by the Foundit team. If you are a team member, open a pull request with a clear description of your changes and follow the existing code style.

License

To be determined.

Contact

For questions or feedback, contact any team member listed above.

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Seneca Polytechnic — Foundit