Future Coders Compete at Stony Brook’s High School Hackathon

Stony Brook University welcomed more than 90 high school students to the Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology (CEWIT) on April 10 for the second annual CEWIT High School Hackathon.

The event, co-hosted by CEWIT and the Office for Research and Innovation’s Workforce Development initiative, brought together 13 Long Island school districts for a day of coding, problem-solving, and mentorship.

The Hackathon, which has more than doubled in size since its first offering, featured 23 teams competing in challenges using Java, Python, and AI tools. Students worked in teams of four and received guidance from Stony Brook undergraduate and graduate students throughout the day. At the end of the competition, teams presented their projects to an interdisciplinary panel of judges.

“We’re very happy to report that we’ve grown from six schools to 13,” said Workforce Development Manager Derek O’Connor, who organized the event. “Some schools brought one team, others brought two. We’re seeing more interest, and hearing that even students in middle school are starting to think seriously about their futures in tech. This event helps give them an opportunity to work with real-world problems and develop their skills.”

Districts represented included Baldwin, Jericho, Kings Park, Levittown, Longwood, Mineola, Mt. Sinai, Plainview-Old Bethpage, Port Jefferson, Rocky Point, Syosset, Three Village, and Westhampton Beach. 

The team from Jericho High School earned the grand prize with a facial recognition software project that impressed the judges.

Kuri DiFede, a teacher from Mineola High School who brought two teams to the competition, spoke about the importance of giving students access to these types of events. “The kids are incredible,” she said. “They’re excited to be here. We’ve got students from grades nine through twelve, and this gives them a sense of what’s possible — from college computer science programs to careers in robotics.”

Stony Brook Vice President for Research Kevin Gardner welcomed students to the event. “As a major research university, we have two missions: to educate and to discover new knowledge,” he said. “What you’re doing here today is innovation — the same kind of thinking that leads to new treatments, products, and businesses.”

Stony Brook student mentors said the students brought enthusiasm and fresh perspectives to coding. “They have way more energy than college students,” said Chen Zhu, a senior computer science major. “They’re just beginning to see what’s possible. Even if they’re not confident in their coding yet, this is a great space for learning.”

Patrick Farrell, a junior computer science major who began his own hackathon journey at Stony Brook last year, said the experience was meaningful. “I never had this kind of opportunity in high school,” he said. “It’s great to help students work through problems and have fun doing it.”

After a pizza lunch, students visited the Reality Deck, the world’s first immersive gigapixel resolution display, offering more than 1.5 billion pixels, where visitors are surrounded on all sides by extremely high resolution images. 

Prizes, including restaurant gift cards and Stony Brook merchandise, were donated by on-campus and industry partners, including the Faculty Student Association. Food and beverages were also provided throughout the day, with contributions from the Offices of Student Affairs and Admissions. The Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Intercultural Initiatives donated prizes, and students received guidance from staff from the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science. Each student received a Stony Brook backpack filled with a t-shirt and gloves from the Office of Government and Community Relations, and winners received gift cards or Stony Brook merchandise.