Congressional Internet Caucus Announces Reps. Nunn, Lieu as Congressional App Challenge Co-Chairs
Press Release: Congressional Internet Caucus Announces Reps. Nunn, Lieu as Congressional App Challenge’s 118th Congress Co-Chairs
By Brynn Baker
WASHINGTON D.C., June 26, 2023: The Congressional Internet Caucus’ co-chairs Anna Eshoo (CA-16), and Michael McCaul (TX-10), have announced their selection of two new co-chairs from the 118th Congress, Representatives Ted Lieu (CA-36) and Zach Nunn (IA-03) to serve as the new co-chairs of the annual coding competition, the Congressional App Challenge (CAC).
Lieu and Nunn will be taking on the roles as co-chairs, formerly occupied by Representatives Jennifer Wexton (VA-10), and Young Kim (CA-39). The Congressional App Challenge is a nonpartisan, congressional initiative to spark student interest in coding across the U.S.. It was established in 2013, as a result of House Resolution 77, the Academic Competition Resolution, and has managed to increase congressional discourse surrounding computer science and coding by two thousand percent, while reaching 335 representatives who hosted a challenge in their district last year. Representatives Lieu and Nunn, a Democrat and Republican, respectively, will assume the roles of co-chairs for the 118th Congress, marking another year of bipartisan congressional support of the app challenge.
Representative Lieu represents California’s 36th Congressional District, largely composed of Los Angeles County. He sits on the Science, Space, and Technology Committee, the House Judiciary, and the Foreign Affairs committee. Lieu holds Computer Science and Political Science degrees from Stanford University, has an education in the nuances of both tech policy and the industry itself, and has been a longstanding advocate for the Congressional App Challenge.
“As a recovering computer science major, I believe it is essential to encourage and nurture a generation of technology savvy students who will continue to innovate our economy and advance our technological edge,” Rep. Lieu said. “The App Challenge provides young students throughout my district an opportunity to pursue their creative and technical talents. I’m excited to launch this year’s competition and encourage all eligible students to participate.”
Representative Nunn is a freshman representative, serving Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, which includes Des Moines and much of Southwest Iowa. He attended Drake University, and went on to serve in the U.S. Air Force for almost 20 years, ultimately becoming the White House’s National Security Council’s Director of Cybersecurity, after which he served in Iowa’s state legislature. Through his co-sponsoring of legislation relating to rural access to high quality internet connection, Nunn has been outspoken on the topic of making technology and internet access more equitable.
“I’m excited to launch this year’s Congressional App Challenge and showcase the talent of students from across the country,” said Rep. Nunn. “We are seeing technology change quickly and our education system must keep up. This competition promotes STEM education, which is crucial for our country to compete on the world stage. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for this competition and the creativity to come from it.”
The Congressional App Challenge team is thrilled to have the chance to be working with the two new co-chairs, both of whom have a deep passion for furthering STEM accessibility and education throughout the nation. Registration for the 2023 Congressional App Challenge has begun, and students can register now using this link. Our new co-chairs look forward to seeing the innovative and outstanding apps that students around the nation create!