In order to recognize a senior student for his impressive tech skills, U.S. Representative Jackie Walorski surprised the students in a computer science class at the Weidner School of Inquiry at Plymouth High School on Monday morning.
PHS computer science student Kobe Johnson was selected as the winner of the 2018 Congressional App Challenge for Indiana’s Second District. His app “Homework Helper” will be showcased in the U.S. Capitol alongside other winners from across the country.
Congresswoman Walorski commented on Kobe’s hard work and noted that it exemplifies the Hoosier ingenuity and innovative spirit that bring prosperity and opportunity to our communities. She added that by encouraging young Hoosiers to develop vital STEM and computer-based skills, we can ensure our workforce is better prepared to take on a leading role in the economy of the future.
PHS computer science teacher Lindsay Moore shared that she is really proud of Kobe and his abilities. Moore said this was the first year she had heard about this challenge but as soon as she received the information about the competition, she forwarded it to the computer science students who had enough experience to be competitive.
She explained that Kobe immediately took up the challenge and was prepared to program a quality submission in the limited time that remained in the submission window.
She added they worked very closely with the school’s IT department to ensure that Kobe had access to the development tools he was most comfortable using. She noted that he only had about week to program his submission before the deadline once they were able to get his computer setup. Kobe’s app design was submitted in October.
Moore mentioned that creating apps can help prepare students for life after high school with future studies and or a possible career in computer science.
She noted that app design challenges have been one of the most accessible ways for her students to document and broadcast their programming proficiency.
According to information provided by Plymouth Schools Marketing Director Judi Lykowski, the Congressional App Challenge is a nationwide computer science competition that was launched by the U.S. House of Representatives in 2015. In the first three years of the challenge, the CAC has reached nearly 9,000 students across 42 states.
Students submit computer programs or smartphone apps written in any programming language, with a winning entry selected in each congressional district. The challenge is an opportunity to recognize the achievements of young people in STEM and to showcase the importance of computer-based skills for middle and high school students.
