V.O.N (Volunteering Opportunities of Nebraska) wins Rep. Mike Flood’s 2024 Congressional App Challenge in Nebraska’s First District
Rep. Mike Flood has named Leo Geck and Kyle Van Sant of Papillion La Vista High School as the winners of the 2024 Congressional App Challenge in Nebraska’s First District.
When asked what inspired the creation of V.O.N, the students said, “As National Honors Society students, we found it tedious to turn in slips of paper to our NHS teacher every time we wanted to earn hours. In a digital age, where most organizations have an app, we decided to create one that could help benefit all students. We used Google Classroom as our inspiration, along with Instagram. With Google Classroom, we wanted to use their distinction between students and administrators, so not everyone could make a post, only our verified organizations. Using instagram, we wanted our UI to reflect easy and clear functions with simple buttons to move from screen to screen.”
This year’s Congressional App Challenge set new records, with an unprecedented 382 Members of the House of Representatives hosting competitions—surpassing the previous high of 374. An incredible 12,682 students from across the country participated, representing a growth of over 1,000 students compared to 2023. These talented students submitted an astounding 3,881 original applications, showcasing their creativity, passion for technology, and the limitless potential of America’s next generation of innovators. This surge in participation reflects the increasing excitement around STEM and highlights a bright future for American innovation.
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 the Broadcom Foundation, AWS, Rise, theCoderSchool, Apple, and others.
The 2024 Congressional App Challenge will launch in May of 2025, and eligible students can pre-register for the competition now.