Sponsored by the US Congress, the Congressional App challenge is a national competition for students interested in Computer Science! Through this challenge, students at MJS may form a team to design and create an app that is original, creative, and innovative for our increasingly technologically advanced future! This competition will take place through the fall. Students do not need to take a programming course to participate, and a variety of languages may be used. See the challenge details below for more information!
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TOPIC: The app can be about any topic. Review of Rules
PLATFORM: The app can be on any platform (web app, desktop/PC app, a web browser extension, robot, Ruby on Rails, mobile, etc).
PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE: Use any programming language: C/C++, Objective C, C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, Ruby, PHP, Swift, “block code”, etc.
FUNCTIONALITY: The app must have some degree of functionality to be competitive.
CONTENT SUITABILITY:The app cannot be indecent, defamatory, in obvious bad taste, demonstrate a lack of respect for public morals or conduct, adversely affect the reputation of Congressional districts, or depict hatred, defame, or threaten a specific community in the society or incite violence. Contain pornography, obscenity or sexual activity are prohibited. The app must not violate the Intellectual Property, common law or privacy rights of other parties.
ORIGINALITY: The app must be original and solely owned by the Contestant such that no other party has any rights or interest, whether known or unknown
Summer 2022 - Challenge Opens
September 2022 - MJS launch
November 1st - Deadline for Registration & App Submission
November 2022 - Judging Period
December 2022 - Winners Announced!
Detailed rules and guidelines can be found through the official Congressional App Challenge Rulebook here.
To register as an individual, students need:
a personal email address that is not their school email account
home’s 9-digit zip code, Congressional District, and Member of Congress
school’s 9-digit zip code, Congressional District, and Member of Congress
A parent or guardian’s contact information (name and email address).
Name and email of student’s coding teacher or mentor (optional)
To register as a team, you’ll need:
The above information for each team member.
One team may participate ONCE as a group.
Madison Junior School's Info:
9-Digit Zip Code: 07940
Congressional District: NJ-11
Congress Member: Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill
If competing as a team, one teammate should create the team profile, which will allow for that user to invite up to three other team members to edit the application. Students will need to complete a personal profile and eligibility quiz. If the team is eligible, they will receive an email allowing them to proceed with their application. The application is made up of a number of questions regarding their app. The most critical component is the demonstration video, which is detailed below.
DEMONSTRATION VIDEO (max 3 min) including the following:
The name(s) of each participant
The name of the app
Clearly explain the purpose of the app (Students should do this in one, clear sentence)
Explain the app’s target audience (who the app is intended for?)
The tools and coding languages used to create the app
Show how the app works
The video should be 1-3 minutes long. Video submissions which do not adhere to the time constraints may be penalized by the judges at their discretion. This is not a video-creation competition. However, the judges view the demonstration video to learn about the app. The video should be as clear and compelling as possible.
Upload the completed video to YouTube, Vimeo, or any other video-hosting site. The video must be set to “public”.
In addition to the demonstration video, the team will need to answer a series of questions similar to the following:
What is the title of your app?
Explain the app’s purpose in one sentence.
Short Description:What inspired you to create this app?
Short Description: What is your app trying to accomplish?
What technical/coding difficulty did you face in programming your app, and how did you address this technical challenge?
Mr. Erdreich and your other teachers at MJS can act as mentors while you create your app. For coding resources and tutorials in Scratch or P5.js, see Mr. E's Digital Classroom and guiding tutorial videos.
Students may work on this challenge at home, or during open-lab in the Makerspace afterschool. In general, the makerspace is open everyday except Wednesdays. A detailed schedule can be found on the Madison Makers club website here.
For questions or support, contact Mr. E for more info!
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