LT. GOVERNOR BYSIEWICZ RECOGNIZES & CELEBRATES SUBMISSIONS FOR THE 7th ANNUAL COMPUTING CHALLENGE

(HARTFORD, CT) - Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz applauds the 26 submissions highlighted as part of the 7th Annual Lt. Governor's Computing Challenge (LGCC). The LGCC is Connecticut’s statewide coding competition for students in grades 3–12. Inspired by the Governor's Council on Women and Girls: Subcommittee on Education and STEAM, the coding for good theme encourages students to design programs that promote health, wellness, and positive change.   

"The Lt. Governor’s Annual Computing Challenge was born out of the Governor’s Council on Women and Girls Education & STEAM Subcommittee with the goal to encourage educational advancement for women and girls in STEAM areas of science, technology, engineering, the arts and math. Computer Science education, especially at an early age, allows our students the opportunity to be curious and engaged in the possibility of their future,” said Lt. Governor Bysiewicz. “Each year, the Challenge brings me a lot of joy to see such excellent work from our very talented and smart students from across the state and to have the ability to highlight just a small snapshot of the incredible talent our young people and educators have.”  

Made possible by the support and participation of various sponsors, 36 selected students, representing 21 different districts across the state, were able to showcase their LGCC projects at an in-person recognition event hosted by Quinnipiac University. 

“Quinnipiac was honored to host the 7th Annual Lt. Governor’s Computing Challenge Recognition Event and celebrate the outstanding achievements of students from across Connecticut,” said Taskin Kocak, dean of the Quinnipiac University School of Computing and Engineering. “The creativity, technical skill and sense of purpose demonstrated by this year’s participants were truly inspiring. Through the ‘coding for good’ theme, these students showed how technology can be used to promote health, wellness and positive change in communities across our state. We are proud to support programs that encourage the next generation of innovators, problem-solvers and leaders in computing and engineering.” 

Lt. Governor Bysiewicz, Shannon Marimon, executive director of Ready CT, Irene Parisi, chief academic officer at the Connecticut State Department of Education, and James Mazzullo, senior associate at Infosys Foundation USA attended the recognition event, along with additional supporting organizations, school educators, and families, to congratulate the students and learn more about the inspiration and design of their projects. 

"We know that Connecticut has some of the brightest, most dedicated students anywhere, and the Lt. Governor's Computing Challenge is the perfect outlet for them to apply their talents to problem solving," said Shannon Marimon, executive director of ReadyCT, the organization leading LGCC implementation. "Connecticut students clearly have an appetite for these types of STEM project opportunities, since we nearly doubled the number of student participants over 2025. Along with that significant uptick, students this year submitted some of the highest quality projects we've ever seen. The LGCC judges did not have an easy time selecting projects for recognition!" 

“Connecticut’s Lt. Governor’s Computing Challenge continues to demonstrate what is possible when students are encouraged to think creatively, solve real-world problems, and apply their learning in meaningful ways,” said Education Commissioner Charlene M. Russell-Tucker. “Through computer science and computational thinking, students are not only building technical skills, but also developing the confidence, collaboration, and innovation needed to unlock lifelong potential.” 
 
"When Lt. Governor Bysiewicz launched the Computing Challenge years ago, we were proud to serve as one of the Challenge’s first sponsors. Now entering its seventh year, the Infosys Foundation US has consistently supported the Challenge as the Professional Development Benefactor with strategic funding that targets engagement of teachers and students in under resourced CT communities, encouraging them to confidently lean into this innovative initiative.  It’s our aspiration to empower young minds to explore computer science and AI concepts throughout the Challenge, offering CT youth the opportunity to hone their creativity and problem-solving skills, while opening doors to be a part of the next generation of entrepreneurs, innovators, and leaders,” said Infosys Foundation USA Senior Associate, James Mazzullo. 

The 2025-26 school year was the seventh successive year the computing challenge was held. More than 930 projects were submitted, emphasizing the drive, creativity and ingenuity of Connecticut’s students. 

One of the priorities of the Governor’s Council on Women and Girls, co-chaired by the Lt. Governor, has been to inspire female students to develop an interest in technology through expanding STEM education among women and girls. The Council is proud to acknowledge that out of the 26 recognized submissions, 16 were from young women and girls or from teams that included young women and girls. 

The recognized submissions were as follows:  

Concept Challenge: 

Grades 3-5:  

Journey Johnson, Cavity Catcher 

*Noah Baldassario, Food Helper 

Grades 6-8: 

Sai Sripada Arjun Daggubati, Aadvik Gudipati, Suzanne Mahapatra & Nathan Pearson, EarthGuard Academy 

*Taegan Domain, Alexander Grant, Nora Kovacs & Maximus St. Germain, Smart Sign 

*Eloise Englund, SheShield 

Grades 9-12: 

Bethany Mejia, SheRise CT 

*Shruthi Srivatsan & Emily Lamar, Sound Saver  

*Milani Wright & Mahki Nelson, The Study Buddy App 

Prototype Challenge: 

Grades 3-5: 

Ella Woodward, Fur-got Alert 

*Hayden Henderson, Breath Buddy 

*Henry Gifford, AllergenCam 

Grades 6-8: 

Bianca Letona, Clementine 

Sashay Hutchinson, Inside the Mind 

*Khushal Sai Kothakota, Syncify 

*Iyann Tenner, Microplastics: An Interactive Learning Game 

Grades 9-12: 

Rajanya Bishi, CardioCare 

*Ningyan Zhang, NutriPaw Design 

Development Challenge:  

Grades 3-5: 

Alana Koganti, Earth Meter 

*Shayaan Ahmed, Micro 

Grades 6-8: 

Iris Cateno, Save The Sea  

Madanmohan Aravind & Chahatesh Killada, Neural Navigator 

*Liam Harris, Pathway To Citizenship: A Bridge to a New Life 

*River Vora & Zen Vora, Don't Go For Broke! 

Grades 9-12:  

Andrew Smiley, LunchByte: School Lunch Wave Tracker 

*Alina Bolf, TraitTriage 

*Aaditya Sadhvani, Health-Track AI 

The submissions denoted with an * received special recognition. This would not have been possible without the support of ACCESS Educational Services, Digital Defenders, Little to Great Scientists, NE FIRST, Texas Instruments, and Ozobot. 

For more information on the Challenge, visit https://www.ltgovcc.org/.