Library System wins Rep. Moore 2023 Congressional App Challenge in Utah’s First District
Rep. Moore has named Hayden Steele, a 12th grader at Syracuse High School as the winner of the 2023 Congressional App Challenge in Utah’s First District.
When asked what inspired the creation of Library System, the students said, “My mother is a third grade teacher at a local elementary school and has a large personal library in her classroom for her students. She often found it frustrating to buy a book and then later release that she already had two other copies of it in her library. Thus was born this little passion project. This website lets her check remotely which books are in her library so she can buy books she does not own already. It also helps her check out the books to her students, because it keeps track of turn-in dates and overdue books.”
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.