{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://ross.house.gov/2024/12/congresswoman-ross-announces-winner-of-2024-congressional-app-challenge", "Congresswoman Ross Announces Winner of 2024 Congressional App Challenge", "2024-12-03", "2024", "2024-12", "Democrat", "House", "NC", "Deborah K. Ross", "R000305", "ross.house.gov", "ross", "https://ross.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "Raleigh, N.C. \u2014 Today, Congresswoman Deborah Ross (NC-02) announced Kenna Zhang, a junior at Cary Academy, as the winner of the 2024 Congressional App Challenge for North Carolina\u2019s 2nd Congressional District. Kenna created the app AIPowered-Hope, which stood out among a record number of submissions in this year's competition, showcasing the incredible talent and creativity of students across Wake County.\n\n\u201cEvery year, I am inspired by the talent, ingenuity, and passion for creating positive change that I see from Wake County\u2019s students during the Congressional App Challenge,\u201d said Congresswoman Ross. \u201cI am amazed by how these young minds use technology to tackle real-world issues and imagine bold solutions to some of our most pressing challenges \u2013 from climate change to devastating diseases. I especially want to congratulate Kenna Zhang, this year\u2019s winner, for her innovative app designed to improve early detection of Parkinson\u2019s Disease. Kenna\u2019s app and the submissions of every student exemplify the kind of forward-thinking ideas that will propel our state and country to new heights.\u201d\n\nKenna developed AIPowered-Hope, an app that uses AI and machine learning to assist with the early diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease. She personally coded the app\u2019s machine learning algorithms, enabling it to analyze drawing samples and voice recordings to identify early signs of the disease. Inspired by the potential to improve early diagnosis and enable timely interventions, Kenna created AIPowered-Hope to enhance the quality of life for individuals at risk of Parkinson\u2019s. She also embraced the challenge as an opportunity to deepen her skills and knowledge in app development.\n\nThe competition was judged by a panel of three leading STEM educators and employers from North Carolina\u2019s 2nd District:\n\nDr. Nehemiah Mabry, PE, Founder and CEO, STEMedia Incorporated\n\nAngela Martin, Software User Experience Designer, Lenovo\n\nMallory Schultz, Advisory Software User Experience Designer, Lenovo\n\nEstablished by the U.S. House of Representatives in 2013, the Congressional App Challenge is a nationwide competition for middle school and high school students designed to expose students to the world of app development without requiring prior coding experience. Each participating congressional district selects a local winner who then competes with winners from other participating districts for further awards.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T22:13:55Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://ross.house.gov/2024/12/congresswoman-ross-announces-winner-of-2024-congressional-app-challenge"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4468340668827295, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}