Steven Speck, a Life Scout,  was recently named as the winner of the 2020 Congressional App Challenge by Congressman Troy Balderson for his Task Assigner app.   

Steven, who was inspired by his mother, a pathologist, developed an app to streamline the process for assigning cases to specialized pathologists working in a laboratory setting. The goal of the app is to lead to quicker turnaround of lab results for patients and their doctors. 

According to Steven’s mom, the program is almost complete and can work on its own and Steven can hopefully complete his Task Assigner app once COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted in hospitals for minors.

“I am thrilled that Steven decided to work on this project and saw it through. He worked long hours on it and was completely self-motivated,” said Steven’s mom. “He is a kid with a strong sense of ethics and once he puts his mind to something, he commits to the task completely.” 

The hard work and perseverance Steven learned from Scouting helped while he was designing this app. “In my opinion, one of the biggest benefits of Scouting is instilling a sense of discipline. I am very grateful for that,” said Steven’s mom.

The Congressional App Challenge is the most prestigious prize in student computer science. Participation in the challenge has grown exponentially and has reached underserved, diverse, and rural student populations.

“Throughout 2020, American ingenuity has proven time and time again to be an unparalleled force for good in the world, and Steven’s creation is no exception,” said Balderson, a member of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, in a press release. “Steven identified a need, developed a plan to remedy it, and put in the hard work necessary to realize his goal of creating a usable product.”