For the first time in Edison history, students no longer had to venture outside of the campus to make use of their technical expertise. On the contrary, Edison organized its first-ever hackathon on campus, where students can progress from being outsiders competing in other locations to organizers of a community hackathon.
As a result of an increased number of technological projects carried out by students, the independent hackathon is a milestone not only for the students themselves but for Edison as a whole.
The shift toward organizing the event internally was a deliberate choice to favor the school’s talent. According to Mrs. Cruz, who is a CTE IT teacher and an organizer of the hackathon event, the intention was for the students to take part in activities within the institution as opposed to external events.
“We wanted to prioritize our students, we wanted to celebrate our students, and we wanted to give our students that opportunity to compete in a collaborative way,” Mrs. Cruz said. “It made it more accessible and it made it more memorable, because we treated it as a field trip.”
There were 90 participants who hailed from various CTE departments such as web and app development, robotics, automotive, and electrical installation, among others. The participants were selected from different shop classes where they needed to interact and collaborate with other people they did not know before.
Many found that the familiarity of the surroundings altered their experience of the competition. Senior Kazi Yashfin emphasized that having the hackathon at Edison meant they were able to relax and concentrate solely on the challenge.
“Making the hackathon in Edison was pretty nice because I’m already comfortable with the environment,” Yashfin said. “It was better competing with Edison students because we didn’t have random people interfering with our work.”
Malachi Kennedy, a senior in the IT CTE field, shared the same sentiment, stating that being in a familiar environment made him more adventurous with his group’s idea.
“Since I was more comfortable in the environment, I felt more confident taking risks with our project instead of playing it safe,” Kennedy said. “It also made communication with teammates easier because we weren’t stressed about the setting.”
The hackathon encouraged students to think of solutions based on the theme of “ending hunger,” making use of platforms such as Unity and Minecraft. The planning involved in the day, which was made possible through sponsorships provided by local banks, a grant from Games for Change, and the continuous flow of snacks, ensured that the energy stayed high.
Although the hackathon was a success, the students are already starting to think about next time. Kennedy thinks that next year would do well to have more defined meetings between mentors, while Yashfin wishes he had more say in the formation of his team.
As far as the future is concerned, Mrs. Cruz looks forward to continuing her work and ensuring that it remains a staple of the school’s events even if the student does not have much experience coding.
Looking forward, Mrs. Cruz hopes the event will continue to be a staple throughout the upcoming school years, regardless of a student’s prior coding experience.
“Don’t go in with the mindset of just, I want to win, because participating in anything allows you to grow as an individual,” Cruz said. “Just go for it in any opportunity. High school goes by fast, so you want to be a part of it.”
