Hackathon: Coding for a Better Community

Location and Schedule

Biology Building on the UWG Campus in Carrollton, GA (1601 Maple Street, Carrollton, GA 30118; see it in Google Maps).

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 9:30am-5:30pm

Below is the tentative schedule for the Saturday event for Youth:

9:30am - Check-in
9:45am - Opening talks & forming teams
10:30am - Code start
12:30pm - Lunch
3:00pm - Code stop
3:15pm - Presentations by teams of youth track
4:15pm - Presentations by teams of advanced track
5:00-5:30pm - Recognition of teams

What you need to bring

We provide each team with a collaborative workstation, which includes a desktop computer.  It is recommended that you also bring a laptop if you are able. We also recommend that you bring a mouse and a power cord for your laptop.  Bringing additional laptops can help a team multi-task, if needed.

FAQ

• What is a Hackathon?

  A Hackathon is a marathon where teams of students design and implement software within a very short time-frame. The participants do not need to have already any technical skills, like programming experience, before the hackathon. Instead, they learn from each other and from mentors at the event.

• Who can participate?

  Teens, aged 13-18 who are currently in middle, junior high, and/or high school can participate. 

• Do I need to be part of a team?

  If you know other students, you can team up already before the Hackathon. But you can also join a team onsite. A team should consist of 2-3 students. Working on your own is strongly discouraged.

• What if I can’t code?

  That is not a problem. We will get you started. Throughout the entire event, there will be professional mentors to help you code. We will use the Scratch programming platform that has been designed for youth programmers. Note that every team needs not only programmers, but also members that design, implement, and promote your team’s app. If you would like to play around in Scratch before the Hackathon, it's free, easy, and fun, and we highly recommend it!

• Can I implement any application?

  At the beginning of the Hackathon, a community leader will introduce an issue in our community that can be tackled through the development of an application in Scratch.  You will have to stick with one of the introduced application options and with the required programming platform. Everything else is decided by your team.

• How much does it cost to participate?

  The early registration fee is $10 per participant and the regular registration fee is $20 per participant. If you would like to participate, but you are not able to pay the registration fee, contact the Fusion Center (fusioncenter@westga.edu, 678-839-6057), and we can work with you.

• How do I register?

  Your parents or guardians have to register you online. Check out the Registration tab for details.

• Other questions?

  Please contact The Fusion Center (fusioncenter@westga.edu).

Tentative Schedule

Friday, April 8, 2022:

5:30pm - Registration
6pm - Opening talks  
6:45pm - Forming teams and dinner
7:15pm - Project work in teams
8:30pm - Closing for the day

Saturday, April 9, 2022:

8:30am - Project discussion & breakfast
9:30am - Project work in teams
12:30pm - Lunch
3:00pm - Code stop
3:15pm - Presentations by teams of Youth Track
4:15pm - Presentations by teams of Advanced Track
5:00 to 5:30 pm - Recognition of teams

What you need to bring

You need to bring a laptop. Don't forget a power cord for your laptop and possibly a mouse.

FAQ

• What is a Hackathon?

  A Hackathon is a marathon where teams of students design and implement software within a very short time-frame. The participants do not need to be computing professionals, but typically they have some technical skills, like programming experience, before the Hackathon. Participants learn also from each other and from mentors at the event.

• Who can participate?

  Any college student with web development skills (e.g. HTML & CSS) and experience with a general purpose programming language (e.g. Java, JavaScript, C#) can participate. If you are still in high school and at least 18 years old, you can participate in the advanced track as well. You do not have to be a computer science major, but we strongly recommend that you have passed a web development course, like UWG's CS2100 Introduction to Web Development, and a CS1 course, like AP CS A or UWG's CS1301 Computer Science I. 

• Do I need to be part of a team?

  If you know other students, you can team up already before the Hackathon. But you can also join a team onsite. A team should consist of 4 students. You cannot work on your own.

• Can I implement any application?

  At the beginning of the Hackathon, a community leader will introduce issues in our community that can be tackled through the development of an app. You will have to stick with one of the introduced app options. Everything else is decided by your team. We hope you will bring your creativity to bear by finding novel solutions to these community issues.

• How much does it cost to participate?

  The early registration fee is $10 per participant and the regular registration fee is $20 per participant. If you would like to participate, but you are not able to pay the registration fee, contact the Fusion Center (fusioncenter@westga.edu, 678-839-6057), and we can work with you.

• How do I register?

  Check out the Registration tab for details.

• Other questions?

  Please contact Jonathan Corley (jcorley@westga.edu).

 

Registration

Please use the registration form to register for the Hackathon. To complete the registration, you will need to send in
the payment as described in the form, and in this registration checklist.

Payment

What is the cost?
Early Bird Registration: $10 per individual - By the end of March 1
Event Registration: $20 per individual - March 2 - 25th
Registration Deadline - March 25th

How do I pay?
You can pay by credit card using the payment portal, or you can write a check payable to the "University of West Georgia." The check needs to be mailed to:

University of West Georgia
Fusion Center
Attn. Morgan Kirby
1601 Maple Street
Carrollton, GA 30118

If you pay by check, please, reference all registered persons in the memo line or include a piece of paper with this information so we know whose registrations it pertains to.

Waiver for Participants Under 18

For each child under the age of 18 that you are registering, this Waiver Form must be completed by a parent or guardian of that child. Please email scanned copy or mail a printed copy to the Fusion Center by March 25, 2022. 

To email us the form, please send to the Fusion Center at fusioncenter@westga.edu. If helpful, you may use the following for assistance with scanning with an iPhone or scanning with an Android phone.

To mail us the form, please send here:
     University of West Georgia
     Fusion Center
     Attn. Morgan Kirby
     1601 Maple Street
     Carrollton, GA 30118

Contact

Please contact us by email (fusioncenter@westga.edu) or phone (678-839-6057).

Congratulation to all award winners of the Hackathon 2020!

Novice Track

Computing Excellence Award

The winners of the Computing Excellence Award are Ben Scholl, Gabriel (Gabe) Daggett, and Jack Huett; depicted above with Ryan Roenigk (GreenCourt).

Highest Impact Award

The winners of the Highest Impact Award are Regan Hutto, Amara Williams, Keitel McCoy, and Cassandra (Cassie) Annan; depicted above with Ryan Roenigk (GreenCourt).  

Creativity Award

Thee winners of the Creativity Award are Miguel Rivera, Amaya Rivera, and Gavin Giese; depicted above with Ryan Roenigk (GreenCourt).

Advanced Track

Technical Excellence Award

The winners of the Technical Excellence Award are Vanthu Tran (not included in image), Zachary (Zach) Madden and Andrew Young; depicted above with Ryan Roenigk (GreenCourt).

Customer Choice Award

The winners of the Customer Choice Award are Stanley (Michael) Jiles, Thomas (Luke) Whaley, and Liam Humphries; depicted above with Ryan Roenigk (GreenCourt).

 

Past Hackathons

• 2020 Hackathon
• 2019 Hackathon
• 2018 Hackathon
• 2017 Hackathon