Celebrating Bipartisanship on Election Day: Watch STEM Bring Congress Together!
On this Election Day, we’re excited to share a story of unity. With an incredible 412 Members of Congress – 93.4% of the House of Representatives – hosting App Challenges in the 118th Congress, this official initiative spans all 50 states and every level of Congressional leadership. A full 100% of state delegations have a majority of Members involved, 100% of Republican and Democratic Leadership and 80% of Committee Chairs and Ranking Members hosted App Challenges this year.
This September, we celebrated #NationalAppChallengeDay by bringing together Representatives Young Kim, Suzan DelBene, and Stephanie Bice with our Alumni Advisory Board. In this special gathering, these leading Members of Congress shared their experiences hosting App Challenges in their home districts and participated in a hands-on coding lessons with our talented alumni. Now, we’re thrilled to release videos from this event which showcase the power of bipartisanship.
These videos capture a rare look at bipartisan collaboration and what it can do to spur the creativity of our next generation of STEM talent. That creativity was on full display during the 2024 Congressional App Challenge, which you can read all about here. We invite you to watch and be inspired by the unity and inspiration that defines the Congressional App Challenge.
Representative Stephanie Bice
(R-Oklahoma, Fifth District)
“I think technology right now is crucial when you are in high school and or college, a lot of your classes revolve around technology, regardless of what your major may be.”
App Challenge Alumni team up with Congresswoman Stephanie Bice to refine a game simulating the legislative process and discussing STEM’s role in education. Congresswoman Bice highlights the App Challenge’s impact by noting students’ innovative solutions to real-world problems, like an app to streamline school carpool lines, showcasing the challenge’s encouragement of practical, problem-solving skills in young coders.
Representative Suzan DelBene
(D-Washington, First District)
“I think no matter what folks do in their lives technology is part of it, we all use technology in every piece of our lives, every type of work that we do, too. So just having those skills is really critically important and I wanted to make sure that young people had kind of a fun way to get engaged and involved even if they weren’t, kind of, techies to begin with.”
Representative Susan DelBene sits down with our alumni to adjust a side-scrolling game that simulates the process of a bill becoming a law, working together to improve its aesthetics and gameplay speed. DelBene, with her tech background and commitment to STEM education, discusses the importance of making technology accessible and engaging for young people, emphasizing how initiatives like the App Challenge can inspire future STEM involvement.
Representative Young Kim
(R-California, 40th District)
“I’m really excited that we get to do this, and I encourage any other Congressional Members that are not doing it, I tell them ‘Why not? Get into it and sign up, and have your district and students participating in the Congressional App Challenge.’”
Representative Young Kim’s highlights her involvement and enthusiasm for the Congressional App Challenge, which she has championed to encourage student participation and exposure to STEM education and coding. The video showcases the significant impact of the program, with Congresswoman Kim’s district submitting close to 500 apps and over 600 students participating in recent years.