Students awarded for apps
Area students recently competed in and won awards in the Congressional App Challenge, representing Garland County well.
Students from Cutter Morning Star High School, Lake Hamilton School District, Hot Springs World Class High School and the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts placed in the challenge for District 4 in Arkansas.
Across District 4 there were
65 apps judged and five apps were chosen to be recognized at the recent Congressional App Challenge reception at Mid-America Science Museum Nov. 9.
According to a news release, the challenge was established in 2013 by members of the U.S. House of Representatives as a nationwide event that encourages students to create and exhibit a software application, or app, for mobile or computer devices on the platform of their choice.
Students were provided opportunities to engage with various STEM educational partners in their community to assist them in developing their apps, the release said. Students were required to provide a YouTube video demonstrating their app and what they learned through developing it.
“I am proud to see so many talented young people creating apps that meet needs in education, finance, the nonprofit sector, and more,” U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-District
4, said in an email to the newspaper. “Competitions like the Congressional App Challenge align with Governor Hutchinson’s efforts to teach coding in public schools and encourage work in STEM fields, giving Arkansas students a competitive advantage in a competitive job market.”
Canon Hale, an eighthgrade student at Cutter Morning Star High School, took second place in the challenge.
According to a news release from the school, this was Hale’s second year to enter the challenge. While still a seventh-grader, Hale was quick to come up with his idea of assisting people in Arkansas who enjoy hiking in learning more about the identification of nature, following an assignment from gifted and talented teacher Deborah Giusti.
Hale’s app, seeatree.com, did not place in the 2017 competition. However, Hale rebuilt the website and app for the 2018 competition, which he then placed in. The app assists users in determining if trees they encounter while hiking and outdoors are dangerous based on trees other users have pinned.
Hale plans to add augmented reality to help with the experience, according to the release.
Lake Hamilton middle, junior and high school students entered 39 apps in the Congressional App Challenge this year.
Three Lake Hamilton teams placed and had their app video shown at the reception and award ceremony. Apps included Homework Wizard by Colleen Miller, Eli Fahad, and Nancy Altamirano; Postcard Maker by Abby Reynolds, and Megan White; and Get Fit by Jaden Wolf, Allie Batchelor, and Dakota Wharton.
Two apps from the EAST program at Hot Springs World Class High School tied for fourth place among the top five rankings in District 4.
The teams tied for fourth place included the ELTE App, created by a team comprised of Madeline Scott, Michael Rivera, and Ella Pace; and the Child Check App, created by a team comprised of Bianca Martin, Bonnie Shannon, and Shawn Wilson.
Two teams from the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts earned recognition in the recent Fourth District Congressional App Challenge.
The team of juniors from ASMSA were recognized as well with one taking first place in the competition.
Karsen Beck of Maumelle, Devin Patel, of Blytheville, Trinity Robinson, of Fayetteville, and Hayden Wood, of Floral, won first place for their app, Find My Teacher. According to a news release from the school, the app helps students at ASMSA locate teachers on campus by providing maps and schedule information.
Juniors Victoria Hwang, of Maumelle, Dawson Jones, of Hot Springs, Solomon Ni, of Jonesboro, and Vraj Modi, of Hot Springs, tied for fifth for their app, Pedagogue, which helps students identify and connect with peer tutors.