Congressional App Challenge

Calling all coders, creators, problem-solvers and future innovators!

Congresswoman Summer Lee is inviting middle and high school students across Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District to participate in the 2026 Congressional App Challenge.

The Congressional App Challenge is the official student STEM competition of the U.S. House of Representatives. Every year, students across the country put their creativity and coding skills to work by building original apps and other coded projects that solve problems, help their communities or simply bring a great idea to life.

You do not have to limit yourself to a traditional phone app. Students can create websites, games, robots, wearable technology, browser extensions, virtual or augmented reality projects, smart devices and much more.

Registration is now open. All projects must be registered and submitted by Monday, October 26, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. ET.

REGISTER FOR THE 2026 CONGRESSIONAL APP CHALLENGE HERE

Who can participate?

You are eligible to compete in PA-12’s Congressional App Challenge if:

You are enrolled in middle school or high school on October 26, 2026.
You live in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District or attend school in the district.
You compete individually or as part of a team of no more than four students.
If competing as a team, at least half of the team’s members must live or attend school in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District.
You submit only one project and compete in only one congressional district.

Not sure whether you live or attend school in PA-12?

Use the House of Representatives’ Find Your Representative tool to confirm your congressional district.

CHECK YOUR CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT HERE

What can you create?

Students may submit any original coded project, on any topic, built for any platform and using any programming language.

Eligible projects may include:

Mobile apps
Websites and web-based tools
Computer or desktop applications
Games with coded logic
Robots and programmed robotics projects
Browser extensions
Wearable technology
Smart devices and embedded systems
Augmented or virtual reality projects
Chatbots or voice assistants
Artificial intelligence or machine-learning projects

Your project must demonstrate some level of functionality and must reflect your own work, effort and technical understanding.

Can I submit something I already created?

Yes. Students may submit an app or coded project created after October 30, 2025.

That means you may be able to enter a project you completed:

In a classroom
Through an afterschool program
During a summer program
At a coding camp
As part of a club
Through another extracurricular activity
Independently at home

Students submitting an updated version of an earlier project should clearly identify the new coding and development completed during the eligible period.

Can I use artificial intelligence?

Yes, but there are important rules.

Students may use artificial intelligence tools to support specific parts of their project, but all AI use must be fully disclosed in the submission. AI cannot be responsible for the entirety of the project’s technical development.

Students must be able to explain their own contributions and demonstrate that they understand how their project and its code work.

How do I enter?

1. Confirm your eligibility

Make sure you live or attend school in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District and meet the competition’s other eligibility requirements.

2. Register online

Students must create an online profile using a personal email address rather than a school-issued email address.

Students will also be asked to provide:

Their home and school information
A parent or guardian’s name and email address
Information for every member of their team
The name and email address of a coding teacher or mentor, if applicable

One student should create the team profile and invite the other team members to join the application.

3. Build and document your project

Your project may address any topic or idea. It should be original, functional and created by the student or student team.

4. Create a demonstration video

Students must submit a public YouTube or Vimeo video that is between one and three minutes long. The video should:

Introduce each student who participated
State the name of the project
Explain the project’s purpose
Identify its intended audience
Describe the tools and coding languages used
Demonstrate how the project works

Students will also answer several questions about their inspiration, the challenges they encountered, what they learned and how they would improve a future version of their project.

5. Submit all materials before the deadline

The registration and submission deadline is:

Monday, October 26, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. ET

Submissions cannot be changed after the submission period closes.

REGISTER FOR THE 2026 CONGRESSIONAL APP CHALLENGE HERE

How will projects be judged?

Congresswoman Lee’s office will review eligible submissions and select a winner to represent Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District.

Projects may be evaluated based on:

Creativity and originality
The quality of the idea
How successfully the idea was implemented
User experience and design
Demonstrated coding and programming skills

Judges may also request access to a project or its source code to verify that it functions as described. Students are encouraged to upload their code to GitHub.

What does the winner receive?

The winning app in each district will be featured on the House.gov website and the CongressionalAppChallenge.us website.

The Program Administrator (the Internet Education Foundation) may distribute additional prizes equally to all participating Congressional Districts.

Each district may provide prizes to district winners. A Member of Congress’ office may provide authorized gifts or awards of nominal value as part of the app competition. Gifts authorized by the Members of Congress’ Handbook include certificates, folders, and frames of a nominal value.

Resources

Questions?

For questions about Congresswoman Lee’s Congressional App Challenge or eligibility in Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District, contact our District Office at (412) 214-5000.

Students experiencing technical problems with the national registration system may contact StudentSupport@CongressionalAppChallenge.us.