High School Computer Competition (Chicago, 2014)

BDPA Chicago, founded March 1986, is the reigning BDPA Chapter of the Year. Our Chicago chapter has won that prestigious award four times (1992, 2000, 2005 and 2013). However, the proudest accomplishment of the chapter may be the two times - 1994 and 2006 - that they took home the gold medal for the national BDPA High School Computer Competition (HSCC). BDPA Chicago is one of only two chapters to outperform BDPA Southern Minnesota chapter over the past ten years in the national HSCC championship. The chapter's HSCC coordinator shared his insights on that 2006 championship effort with our blog a few years ago.

Hundreds of young men and women have been impacted by the Student Information Technology Education & Scholarship (SITES) program in Chicago. Some of these students shared their thoughts about BDPA in this video clip:



We are pleased to report on the progress of the students featured in this video:

• Courtney Elzy scheduled to graduate next year from Illinois State University.
• Joseph Huggins, Jr. graduated from the US Naval Academy. He now serves our nation as a midshipman for the US Navy.
• We are unsure about the current whereabouts of Kenneth McCune. Do you know where he matriculated for college and such?
• Carlton Means attended Hampton University. He is now working at Adventist Midwest Health.
• Lee Reed graduated with honors from the University of Michigan. He now works for BDPA sponsor Deloitte.

There are new students competing for the right to represent the chapter at the 2014 HSCC championship in Indianapolis. The national team for Chicago will be selected from among the students shown in the photo shown below.

Back Row: Malcolm Range, Tyrese Cook, Raymond Adams, DeVaughn Welch
Middle Row: Cassie Bey, Christian Cherry, Paige Davis
Front Row: Matthew Davis, Marcus

BDPA Chicago Chapter’s SITES program teaches students in 6th through 12th grade to create web applications with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, MySQL, Ajax and PHP using components of the agile development methodology. Students that are ineligible to compete learn how to create android mobile applications. In addition to technical topics, the students are coached in effective study habits, presentation skills, professionalism and leadership. The top five students based on participation points, homework, and test scores will participate in the national competition.

These BDPA students are encouraged to pursue post-secondary education, be the best that they can be and encourage others to do the same. We need support from our blog's readers to raise funds to provide college scholarships for BDPA Chicago students. Won't you help us by making a secure online donation?

Related articles

• Overview: BDPA High School Computer Competition

BDPA Partners with US Navy to Create More Officers and Gentle(wo)men

The US Navy agreed to participate in the 2013 BDPA Technology Conference as part of its Diversity and Student Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) outreach programs. The Navy Recruiting Command is taking the lead for this event with a focus on workshops for students, parents and industry which foster year round engagement with BDPA for youth interested in STEM careers. Also, the Navy Recruiting Command will coordinate the presentation of their booth at the BDPA Career Fair on August 16-17, 2013 in Washington DC.

There is a rich history between BDPA and the US Navy. In 2010, Admiral Gary Roughead, then Chief Naval Officer, invited BDPA co-founder Earl Pace to the Pentagon to discuss expanded partnership between Navy and BDPA. Adm. Roughead felt Navy should expand its outreach engagements with BDPA over the next few years as BDPA is the only cyber-focused affinity group identified by the Navy.  This increased partnership now includes expanded year-round STEM-Intelligence/Cyber engagements with local BDPA chapters.

Earlier this year, Raven Stevenson, one of the alumni members of the BDPA High School Computer Competition program graduated from Duke University as a Navy Ensign becoming the organization's first student member to do so. Raven attended Duke University on a full Navy ROTC scholarship (valued at $180,000) that she earned at the 2009 BDPA Technology Conference.  Raven tells the story best herself in this video!

Another BDPA HSCC alumni student, Joseph Huggins, Jr. is on the journey as well. He agreed to join the US Navy in 2010.

BDPA looks forward to supporting the efforts of the Navy to identify additional information technology talent ... both seasoned professionals and young people ... during our upcoming conference. Kudos to BDPA account manager Perry Carter and National Office administrator Lesley Menor for working with the Navy to see this sponsorship renewal through to its conclusion.

2006 National BDPA HSCC Champions (Chicago)

My understanding is that this photo includes the young brothers from Chicago that won the 2006 National BDPA High School Computer Competition (HSCC) championship in Los Angeles, CA.  

L-R: Yvette Graham, TBD, Lee Reed, TBD, Joseph Huggins, Gibran McDuffie and TBD.

Can anyone help us name the other folks in this photo?

HSCC Testimonial: 2009 BDPA Chicago High School Competition Team (VIDEO)

This is a remarkable video pulled together by BDPA Chicago education director Deborah De Vaughn. It provides some remarkable insights from the five young people that represented Chicago at the 2009 National BDPA High School Computer Competition Championship held in Raleigh NC.





We are very proud of Courtney Elzy, Joseph Huggins, Kenneth McCune, Carlton Means and Lee Reed. In fact, these young people have inspired us to create a college scholarship fund for future BDPA Chicago students!

HSCC Testimonial: Joseph Huggins, Jr. (BDPA Chicago)

Joseph Huggins Jr. graduated from high school earlier this year. He made the decision to accept a commission with the US Navy. He left on July 27th for the Naval Academy Prep School in Newport, Rhode Island. There he will receive 10 months of extra academic and military training before being transferred to the Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

Joseph earned Bemley Scholarships from BDPA Education and Technology Foundation (BETF) for his performance in the 2006, 2007 and 2008 national High School Computer Competition (HSCC) championships.

Joseph was kind enough to share his thoughts on the HSCC program with us:

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The day I first became a member of BDPA seems like ages ago, although it has only been five years since I first joined this program that has changed my life forever. My first year competing with the BDPA Chicago Chapter in the HSCC, I believe, was my best year. The year was 2006 and I remember walking to into a classroom and feeling intimidated by the amazing talent that surrounded me. Being only in 8th grade, I was one of the youngest students and was very shy. I knew I had my work cut out for me.

Surprisingly, the competition seemed to fade away as if it just disappeared into thin air. Somehow, after the long months of training, I found myself among the top five students selected to compete at the national conference. The Chicago Chapter took first place that year. I can remember the feeling I had that night as we were announced the first place champions of the BDPA National High School Computer Competition. Winning the national competition was one the greatest accomplishments of my life.

After my experience with BDPA in 2006, I decided to stick around and work hard in order to compete in the HSCC for the rest of my high school career. In the following three years I made the team and the Chicago Chapter placed in the top three winning teams two years in a row. I am not able to compete in the HSCC this year in 2010 due to my obligations to U.S. Navy. I have been accepted to the United States Naval Academy where I will study computer engineering and upon graduation will be a commissioned officer in the United States Navy or Marine Corps.

I would like to give thanks to the BDPA Foundation for expanding my knowledge of information technology and exposing me to the many great and amazing people I have met over the years. I would like to give special thanks to the people like Gibran McDuffie, Pamela Norfleet, Bryan Moore, Yvette Graham, and the host of other BDPA members and volunteers that have helped to shape me into the young man that I am today.

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Joe is a remarkable young man. Whenever you hear a BDPAer talking about our work in advancing careers from 'the classroom to the boardroom' you would do well to remember Joe as an example of  the classroom'!   You can celebrate Joe's story best with a secure online donation to the Bemley Scholarship Fund so that we can help more young squires in the future.

2006 National BDPA High School Computer Competition (HSCC) Rankings

The National BDPA HSCC championships were held in Los Angeles CA in 2006. The west coast venue proved to be too costly for some teams to attend. As a result, the level of participation dipped down to 19 teams. Nevertheless, the battle for supremacy amongst the high school students was intense.

The HSCC team trained by BDPA Southern Minnesota tried valiantly to defend the national championship won the year before. However, this was the year for the HSCC team trained by BDPA Chicago chapter to finally break through for the gold medal. It was a remarkable effort by four truly remarkable young people (Joseph Huggins, Lee Reed, Andreaus Robinson and Maurice Shelton), their coach (Gibran Adejele) and chapter president (Yvette Graham).

Here are the rankings for all 19 teams that competed in 2006 national HSCC championships with the scholarship winnings for each student in parenthesis:

1. Chicago ($2500 Bemley Scholarship)
   
2. Southern Minnesota ($1500 Bemley Scholarship)
   
3. Washington DC ($500 Bemley Scholarship)
   
4. Chattanooga
   
5. Central Illinois
   
6. Richmond
   
7. Austin
   
8. Hartford
   
9. Cincinnati
   
10. Los Angeles
    
11. Charlotte
    
12. Philadelphia
    
13. Detroit
    
14. Twin Cities
    
15. Dayton
    
16. Dallas
    
17. St. Louis
    
18. Atlanta
    
19. Rhode Island

This was the only year since 2002 where we didn't have HSCC teams trained by Cleveland or New Jersey chapters in the competition.

Our foundation seeks to increase the number of students that receive Bemley Scholarships in 2009 and beyond. To do so, we need your help. Please consider making an online donation to help us interest young people in science and technology.

Anyhow, were any of you at the 2006 National BDPA Technology Conference held in Los Angeles, CA? Do you remember the HSCC championships? Do you remember any of the workshops or speakers from that year's conference?