By Grace Allen

Rep. Jake Auchincloss has named Sophia Evans, a 12th grader at King Philip Regional High School, as the winner of the 2024 Congressional App Challenge for Massachusetts’s 4th District. 

The national competition invites students to showcase their talents in computer science.

Evans’ app, called EcoConnect, aims to make it easy for people to promote and attend cleanup events in their community. The idea for the app came to Evans after taking an AP Environmental Science class at the high school during her junior year.

“I learned a lot about the effects of litter on the environment,” she said. “I guess I was inspired by that experience.”

Rep. Auchincloss, who hosted Evans and the other finalists on January 10 at his Newton office, said in an email that EcoConnect was an example of “clean coding and a wonderful way to improve our towns and meet our neighbors. Congratulations to Sophia.”

Evans, a Norfolk resident, says she first became interested in computer science after taking a class at the high school during her sophomore year. That same year, she participated in a hackathon at MIT with other high school students. She enjoyed the experience so much that she went on to participate in several other hackathons. 

“I just love the problem-solving aspect of coding,” said Evans. “Being able to sit down and focus on a problem, it’s very rewarding.”

She also pointed out that computers provide teens a platform for social interaction. 

“I love how computers can connect people,” she explained. “I play a lot of video games and I meet a lot of people through those games. The fact that computer science, and all these projects you might work on, can connect people across the globe, that’s really cool to me.”

Last summer, Evans interned for Hack Club, a non-profit that supports and encourages teenagers from all backgrounds to use their computer skills to solve problems. It was there that she first learned about the Congressional App Challenge and decided to apply.

The Congressional App Challenge was created in 2015 by leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives to foster an appreciation for STEM and computer science in teens. Every year, members of Congress challenge middle and high school students in their districts to create original apps with the goal of encouraging careers in tech. The challenge is considered one of the most prestigious awards for student coders.

In the challenge, students work alone or in teams to produce a demonstration video which shows the purpose of the application, how it works, the target audience, and the tools and coding languages used to create the app. Students are encouraged to apply for the challenge regardless of coding experience. A panel of judges evaluates the entries.

“I was heartened this year to see many of the apps focus on building community, including one that brokered civil discourse on political issues, and another that coached young people on how to socialize better,” said Auchincloss. “The next generation knows that Web 2.0’s version of social media, which foments tribalism, does not need to remain the status quo. Seeing students build better on the same day that Tik Tok lost oral arguments at the Supreme Court felt like an inflection point to me.”

Evans says she plans to add a user-friendly interface and other improvements to her app, with the goal of eventually putting it on the App Store. The senior, who moved with her family to the U.S. from England when she was just three years old, hopes to stay in the Boston area for college and major in computer science. She has an interest in art also, so game development is another possibility.

Evans and other winners from across the country will travel to Washington, D.C. in April to participate in the annual House of Code celebration, which is held at the United States Capitol. The event will honor the participants as well as offer opportunities to meet members of Congress and leaders in the tech industry. Last year, 360 winning students from over 220 Congressional Districts participated.

To learn more about the Congressional App Challenge, visit congressionalappchallenge.us.