June 08, 2016

Moulton to Co-Chair 2016 Congressional App Challenge 

Representatives Seth Moulton and Ed Royce will spearhead student coding contest

 

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Congressional Internet Caucus and the Internet Education Foundation announced that Congressmen Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Ed Royce (R-CA) will serve as Co-Chairs for the 2016 Congressional App Challenge (CAC).

 

"We are currently on track to reach a million unfilled programming jobs by 2020. These jobs and skills are crucial to the innovation economy," said Moulton. "I'm excited to serve as co-chair of the Congressional App Challenge with Rep. Ed Royce to encourage students across the country to learn how to code. This challenge is a nationwide effort to open up those opportunities to students in every community, and I look forward to seeing what they create.”

 

“As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and a representative from the world’s innovation capital, I know how important a STEM proficient workforce is to the United States remaining an economic powerhouse. I encourage all of my colleagues to participate in the Congressional App Challenge, an excellent opportunity to recognize talented young people learning the skills being used to build the future,” said Royce.

 

The 2016 CAC will take place from July 18 - November 2, 2016. Officially in its second year, the Congressional App Challenge is a bipartisan congressional initiative to improve student engagement in coding and computer science. Particular efforts are made to engage those students from groups and regions that are underrepresented in the tech community. Students can create their apps on any platform, working alone or in teams of up to four. Winning apps are selected by local judges, and the student winners will be honored by their Congressional representatives and have their apps put on display in the Capitol Building.

 

In 2015, more than 1,700 high school students from 32 states signed up to compete. The students submitted nearly 500 original apps, with 116 Congressional districts hosting successful local challenges. The House of Representatives displays the winning apps online here.

 

To learn more about Congressman Moulton visit his website or connect with him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Medium.

 

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