NEWARK — On Thursday, Feb. 18, U.S. Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr. announced the winners of the 2015 Congressional App Challenge for high school students in New Jersey’s 10th Congressional District. Josua Soto-Vasquez, Gianfranco Cervantes and Yaxenis Ramos of North 13th Street Tech in Newark were named the winners for their app “Social MeatUp,” a social app that allows you to meet people who like and share the same passion for food as you do.
“The Congressional App Challenge showcases the innovation and technical skills of New Jersey students and I congratulate Josua, Gianfranco and Yaxenis on winning this year’s competition,” said Payne. “Their success reminds us that we must continue to invest in STEM education to ensure that young people can learn, create, build and pursue innovative careers that are essential to the economic future of our nation.”
The Congressional App Challenge is an annual competition intended to highlight the value of computer science and STEM education by encouraging U.S. high school students to learn how to code by creating their own applications. Entries to the competition in New Jersey’s 10th Congressional District were judged by a panel of local experts on several criteria, including quality of the idea, implementation of the idea, and demonstrated excellence of coding and programming skills.
As a winning app in the contest, “Social MeatUp” will be displayed on the Congressional App Challenge website and on a digital display in the U.S. Capitol Building for the next year.
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