U.S. Rep. Thomas Kean Jr., District 7 | Official U.S. House headshot
U.S. Rep. Thomas Kean Jr., District 7 | Official U.S. House headshot
Today, Congressman Tom Kean Jr. announced the winners of the NJ-07 Congressional App Challenge. Jonah Park from Westfield and Arnav Jain from Short Hills, both students at The Pingry School, secured the top spot with their app, Root. This competition is recognized as a leading prize in computer science for students across the United States.
Root is described as "an educational app focused on teaching kids about the science behind the environment and how change is possible." It targets children from third to eighth grade with a curriculum that includes articles, videos, and quizzes. The app's Explore page encourages users to apply their knowledge for real-world impact.
As winners, Park and Jain will be invited to the #HouseOfCode celebration in Washington D.C. in April 2025. Their app may also be featured in the Capitol Building and on House.gov, which receives around 10 million visitors annually. Additionally, they will benefit from waived copyright registration application fees through the ARTS Act.
Judges Samantha Billig and Vincent Panico selected five other entries for Honorable Mention: Testify by Shrenik Rakshit of Voorhees High School; NourishNest by Jonathan Chang of Union County Magnet High School; Sustainable Strides by Clara Risso and Rebecca Lubeck of Watchung Hills Regional High School along with Kayla Peng of Kent Place School; FastLingo by Dheirya Tyagi of Bernards High School; and Billology by Shiven Das of Bridgewater-Raritan Regional High School.
Congressman Kean expressed his admiration for all participants: “I am continually inspired by the creativity and innovation demonstrated by our students,” he said. He highlighted Root as an example of young leaders using technology to address pressing challenges such as environmental education.
The Congressional App Challenge was established to emphasize STEM skills essential for economic growth in America. With predictions indicating a shortage of up to 1 million programmers by 2021, initiatives like CAC aim to encourage youth engagement in these fields.
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