EVERETT, WA—Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) today announced Will Garrison, a student at Burlington-Edison High School, as the winner of the 2018 Congressional App Challenge.

Garrison was inspired to create his app, CalcuMath, after playing a game in sixth grade called Math Bowling. The app aims to help users practice and learn math skills in a fun and engaging way. 

Washington state continues to be a leader in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) with more than 313,000 high school students and 165,000 two-year college students enrolled in Career and Technical Education programs. 

"CalcuMath helps the user practice their math skills and learn in a fun and engaging way," said Garrison. 

“The Congressional App Challenge has again shown the creativity of students from across Northwest Washington. I congratulate all of the students who participated in this year’s competition and our winner, Will Garrison, who tackled a pressing issue of how to better engage students in the critical STEM field,” said Larsen. 

This year’s app designs included Garrison's app to practice and learn math skills in a fun and engaging way; an app to make note taking easy; and an app to help determine how much to tip at a restaurant based on service experience and to help decide future restaurants to visit.

As the Second District winner, Garrison will receive $250 in Amazon Web Services credits, and his app will be eligible to be on display in the U.S. Capitol building and, on the House of Representatives website.

In 2016, Burlington-Edison High School senior Alexandria Kissas won with an app designed to help people organize multiple lists on their smart phones.

The Congressional App Challenge is an annual competition that aims to help maintain U.S. competitiveness by proactively inspiring youth to pursue crucial STEM skills.

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