Most students come to CHS with art, journalism, radio, or TV in mind. Because of this, it’s commonly viewed as one of the “least STEM savvy schools” in the Monmouth County Vocational School District (MCVSD).
However, CHS students have repeatedly proven this narrative wrong. Seniors Charlie Brekke of Atlantic Highlands, Jordan Denzler of Middletown and Garrett Stemetzki of Wall won first place in the 2023 Congressional App Challenge for the Fourth District of New Jersey for their app, Wilderly. This marks Communications’ second consecutive victory and continues the now six-year streak of CHS placing in the competition.
Each year, U.S. representatives invite middle and high school students in their districts to create an original, functional app for a chance to win. According to the 2023 Congressional App Challenge rulebook, contestants are judged on the quality and implementation of the idea, along with demonstrated excellence of programming skills.
To some, this is a daunting task to undertake, let alone perfect. While the trio faced difficulties during the app’s development, Advanced Java Programming teacher Laura Gesin believes the finished product overcame all challenges.
“They pushed through and created an app that empowers individuals, and I think this focus on the impact one individual can have on a large-scale problem really makes their app shine,” Gesin said.
And empower they did, with Congressman Chris Smith, representative for New Jersey’s fourth congressional district, commending the group on the originality and importance of their program.
“Their app is not only innovative and creative but also educational, as it is designed to teach young children about the invasive as well as endangered species in our area through interaction with environmental organizations and nature,” Smith said in a press release.
Stemetski cited the recent Spotted Lanternfly invasion, a common non-native species in New Jersey, as their motivation to teach future generations about the dangers of invasive species.
“The goal we had for our app was for it to solve a social issue, and one issue we thought was really important now is climate change and learning about invasive and endangered species in our area,” Stemetzki said.
On April 10-11, the group will be attending the @HouseOfCode celebration in Washington, D.C. where they will demonstrate their app to Rep. Smith and get a chance to connect with other winners from across congressional districts.
Brekke feels this event is one of the benefits of winning.
“I can’t wait to go to Washington. I think it’ll be really fun and it’s just a really good opportunity overall to connect with people and get more insight into the field,” Brekke said.
Each team member expressed surprise at their victory, but it did not come without feelings of satisfaction.
“We were very happy when we won, it was a really nice feeling to feel that vindication for all the hard work we put in,” Stemetzki said. “[When we] turned our app in, we were really proud of what we had done.”
