For the sixth year in a row, Carrollton High School has won the Congressional App Challenge. The program, spearheaded by the U.S. House of Representatives, aims to inspire middle and high school students to delve into coding and contemplate future paths in computer science.

The Congressional App Challenge involves Members of Congress organizing contests in their respective districts for middle and high school students. 

The initiative encourages students to delve into coding and to consider careers in computer science. Every participating Member of Congress chooses a winning app from their district, and the winning teams are invited to present their apps to Congress at the annual #HouseOfCode festival. This program is a collaboration between the public and private sectors, facilitated by contributions from Omidyar Network, AWS, Rise, theCoderSchool, Apple, and other supporters.

Representing CHS was senior Joseph Ivey and sophomore Omar DeJesus, who collaborated to develop an app called DA — a valuable resource for individuals affected by domestic abuse. Their app won the district competition supported by Rep. A. Drew Ferguson within Georgia’s Third District.

“It was awesome to be selected as the winner,” said Omar. “I’ve enjoyed learning about computer science, but now I think it could be my career path.”

Joseph added, “Making apps that help the community is a game changer. We hope to publish this app and allow it to help those it was intended for.”

According to CHS computer science teacher Robby Blakemore, the Congressional App Challenge is the most prestigious prize a computer science student can receive.

“The Congressional App Challenge allows students to create meaningful apps and showcase them to a wider audience,” said Blakemore. “Encouraging students to solve community problems will make our community even stronger.”

Blakemore said other CHS teams have created apps that are free to download. To get started, search TrojanCSApps on the App Store or Trojan CS Apps on Google Play. 

CUTLINE: Carrollton High School students Joseph Ivey (left) and Omar DeJesus (right) won the Congressional App Challenge. This is the sixth consecutive year CHS has won the competition.