LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC (Samsung Mobile), today recognized the top five STEM students and their mobile application concepts at a special announcement ceremony at the 2014 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The winning ideas came out of Samsung’s 2013 Mobile App Academies, which were hosted across the nation in six U.S. cities this past summer.
Now in its second year, the Samsung Mobile App Academy has exposed high school students to the growing possibilities of mobile application development and provided the opportunity to create app concepts that are relevant to them and their communities. Samsung Mobile collaborated with highly recognized engineering universities—University of California, Berkeley; Georgia Institute of Technology; University of Illinois at Chicago; Massachusetts Institute of Technology; University of Texas at Dallas; and Polytechnic Institute of New York University—to host six two-day mobile application academies for top-performing high school students interested in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Grand Prize winner Jeffrey Hong, a twelfth grader at Newman Smith High School in Carrollton, TX, received a $20,000 scholarship for his Dash’corder application. Hong’s application transforms a smartphone into a dashboard camera, keeping the community safe by promoting best driving practices. With the ability to record live footage with a certified time stamp option, the application aims to reduce the “bystander” effect and gain emergency services at a faster rate. To ensure the safest of road regulations, this application would run as a background program, allowing drivers to use their hands-free communication devices.
Jeremy Ide, an eleventh grader at Hollis Brookline High School in Hollis, NH, received second place and a $10,000 scholarship for his Wake Up With Friends application. Acting as a social alarm clock, Wake Up With Friends allows users to compete with their friends to see who can wake up the fastest in the morning by shutting off their alarms first. They can also digitally “poke” their friends who have yet to wake up.
The third place prize of a $5,000 scholarship was awarded to Yash Shirsath, an eleventh grader at Grayson High School in Loganville, GA. Yash created the Leap mobile application—a paradigm-shifting app that redefines the way consumers wait in line. By taking crowdsourcing and gaming to a whole new level, users can skip lines, reserve spots, and/or exchange tickets at major events, super sales, and store openings using a proprietary point system. A points fee is calculated, which also rewards the businesses taking part in the program.
Fourth and fifth place winners, Nicholas Kenealy from Riverside, IL, and Safa Mohammed from Plano, TX, along with the winners, will receive their choice of a Samsung Galaxy® S 4 or Galaxy Note® 3 smartphone. For more information or to view winner idea submissions, please visit www.scholastic.com/samsungacademy.
Samsung, Galaxy, Galaxy S, and Galaxy Note are all registered trademarks of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Other company names, product names and marks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners and may be trademarks or registered trademarks.
About Samsung Telecommunications America
Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC, (Samsung Mobile) a Dallas-based subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., researches, develops, and markets wireless handsets, wireless infrastructure, and other telecommunications products throughout North America. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in technology, opening new possibilities for people everywhere. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of televisions, smartphones, personal computers, printers, cameras, home appliances, LTE systems, medical devices, semiconductors, and LED solutions. We employ 270,000 people across 79 countries with annual sales of US$187.8 billion. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.
