Winners announced for Ventura County’s 2019 Hackathon by the Sea

CAMARILLO, Calif. - The third annual Hackathon by the Sea, presented by the Ventura County Office of Education, was held in Camarillo last weekend and the winning projects have been announced.

During the event, 157 Ventura County High School students worked throughout the night alongside 50 volunteer mentors to code apps and games of their own creation.

The Office of Education said the purpose of this competition is to encourage students to use their skills with technology in creative ways.

At the end of the event, the student teams presented their projects to a panel of judges who chose the following winners for each category:

Overall Winner: Kalea Gin, Sofia Ieraci and Matthew Omidghaemi from Westlake High School won for their project, "Turtle Trouble," which is, "a survival game meant to engage users in an exciting way to raise awareness about pollution and support marine wellness through ad revenue donations."

Best Demo: Allison Tang, Ishya Cherukupalli and Shyla Yadav from Oak Park High School won for their project, "Social Vista," which is, "an app that helps immigrants assimilate to their new communities."

Most Creative: Melvin Soriano from El Camino High School won for his project, "Modified Pacemaker," which is a, "custom and reprogrammable pacemaker to help the growth of heart stem cells on suture," in order to combat heart disease and heart failure.

Humanity Award: September Goldberg and Jennifer Lopez from Pacifica High School, Kayden Jackson from Adolfo Camarillo High School and Sophia Mai Nugwynne from Thousand Oaks High School won for their project, R.O.M.A., which is, "an application that the user can use to seek personalized company that won't judge them."

Most Technical: Gabriel Bacon and Paul Kim from Ventura High School for their project, "Snitch-Master 3000," described as an, "RFID/Google Sheets-based attendance system [that] can help teachers take more accurate attendance, improve security and productivity and save money for schools. By using cards to automate the process, attendance can be done in real time, and students who have been absent from school can instantly see what assignments they have missing.

The Ventura County Office of Education said Hackathon by the Sea - Girl's Edition, a similar competition for girls only, will be held next spring.

To register for the Girl's Edition or for more information, you can visit their website here.