John Austin is a 3-time national High School Computer Competition participant from our BDPA St. Louis chapter. He graduated earlier this year from McCluer North High School and plans to major in computer science at Missouri Valley College. John plans to become an information technology analyst and mentor children in his community. He earned a
Dr. Jesse Bemley Scholarship as a result of his high performance in the 2010 national HSCC championship held in Philadelphia.
John shared his thoughts on BDPA in the following testimonial.
"I have learned a great many things from participating in the High School Computer Competition (HSCC). It has changed my entire outlook on and attitude toward life. Before participation in the program I was shy, and turned away from seemingly impossible challenges BDPA has altered all of these qualities.
One of my most memorable moments I had during my participation in the HSCC was during the coding part of the competition. Time was running out and our connection string to the data basic was not working properly. We were puzzled and had no clue what to do. All of our hard work was about to be wasted due to one little line of code. Just at that moment when we were about to call it quits, I had remembered that earlier during the competition we turned off the data, so we could work on other problems with the website to prevent errors. Our team had totally forgotten to turn it back on. Once I had explained the problem to the team. They were relieved that were could finish and was back in the competition. I felt like the hero of the team at the point. I was impressed with myself and so was my team. We came in fifth-place that year. This was one of my most memorable moments during my time with BDPA.
Over the years, participating with BDPA has taught me what it takes to succeed. From months of tough practice and studying, I have gained a hard work ethic, organization and leadership skills. From my fellow teammates, I have learned to work well with others in a group; as it is necessary to cooperate and get along with others. But most important, I have also gained self confidence. If I fail, I’ll just try again and do better the next time. I realize that it is necessary to take risks in order to gain success. I know now, whether I succeed or fail it is irrelevant, it is only important that I have tried my best."
We want to significantly increase the funding for our Bemley Scholars. Please take a moment to help us with
your secure online donation! That would be the best way to honor the legacy of
John Austin and his HSCC teammates from BDPA St. Louis chapter.
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