Studace wins Rep. Russ Fulcher’s 2023 Congressional App Challenge in Idaho’s First District
Rep. Fulcher has named Jalen Lu, an 11th grader at Timberline High School, as the winner of the 2023 Congressional App Challenge in Idaho’s First District.
When asked what inspired the creation of Studace, the student said, “I have always struggled with time management and keeping focus while working. To counter this problem, I have used many different techniques, from timing myself and keeping a planner, to studying inside of a library or coffee shop. The downside of using so many different techniques is that I need to keep track and organize them in order for them to be effective. I need to keep a planner and notebook in my backpack, open up browser tabs for a digital timer and YouTube ASMR video, and travel to the physical study areas. It becomes ironic when I need to organize and spend time managing tools that are supposed to help me organize and spend time working in the first place. Therefore, I decided to create an app to help with that, an app that serves as the middleman, aiding students to study and focus without the student needing to spend time and energy managing or organizing it. By having all sorts of study tools and an online relaxing environment all in one page, the student does not need to have multiple tabs open and items out, nor do they need to organize their workspace or risk getting distracted.”
This year’s Challenge saw an unprecedented level of participation, with 374 Members of the House of Representatives hosting competitions, surpassing the previous record of 340. A remarkable 11,334 students from across the United States competed in this year’s Challenge, marking an impressive increase of nearly 1,000 participants compared to the previous record set in 2019. The enthusiasm and creativity these students display is a testament to the growing interest in technology and signal a bright future for American innovation. The surge of ingenuity continued with a whopping 3,645 original applications flooding in, nearly a thousand more than the previous year’s high. This remarkable growth showcases the exceptional talent and innovation within our nation’s youth.
The Congressional App Challenge is an official initiative of the U.S. House of Representatives, where Members of Congress host contests in their districts for middle school and high school students, encouraging them to learn to code and inspiring them to pursue careers in computer science. This resounding show of bipartisan support emphasizes the critical importance of STEM education in today’s rapidly evolving world. Each participating Member of Congress selects a winning app from their district, and each winning team is invited to showcase their winning app to Congress during our annual #HouseOfCode festival. The program is a public-private partnership made possible through funding from Omidyar Network, AWS, Rise, theCoderSchool, Apple, and others.
The 2024 Congressional App Challenge will launch in May of 2024, and eligible students can pre-register for the competition now.