HUDSON – Today, Congressman Dave Joyce (OH-14) presented Regina Gao, the winner of the 2019 Congressional App Challenge for Ohio’s 14th Congressional District, with a Congressional Proclamation. A student at Western Reserve Academy (WRA), Regina created “Storify” to help students learn science by incorporating comics and games with their curriculum. Storify was one of 2,117 apps submitted by 10,000 students in the 2019 Congressional App Challenge.

“Each year I look forward to seeing what OH-14 students submit for this challenge and am always impressed by the creative things that they are working on,” said Dave. “Regina’s Storify app is a great example of the innovation and ingenuity of young students throughout Northeast Ohio. I’m proud to present her with a Congressional Proclamation to recognize her great accomplishment and applaud her desire to use her technological talents to help others learn about science.” 

“We are so proud of Regina and her Storify app,” said WRA Head of School Suzanne Buck. “WRA students dream, innovate and create with the help of impassioned faculty, our experiential curriculum, and facilities like our Wang Innovation Center, where any project is possible. We’re grateful to Congressman Joyce for recognizing Regina with this Congressional honor, which has been received by a WRA student for the past two years.”

To learn more about Regina’s impressive Storify app, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ekjinf4aMoA

The Congressional App Challenge is a district-level competition for middle school and high school students that aims to encourage them to learn to code and inspire them to pursue careers in computer science. The winner from each congressional district is given a $250 Amazon Web Services gift card and invited to Washington, D.C. for the official demonstration of their app at the celebration #HouseOfCode. At this event, students will get to see their app displayed in the U.S. Capitol and connect with other coders from around the country.

In the first four years of the Congressional App Challenge, it has inspired over 14,000 students across 48 states to program an app. Computer science and high-tech industries are the fastest growing, high-value professional fields in the United States. There are currently over half a million computer science jobs across the country that remain unfilled due to a shortage of qualified candidates.

###