SNELLVILLE, Ga. — One Brookwood High School junior developed an app that would eliminate the numerous visits to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), making getting a license easier, and won an award from a congressman.
Niheer Patel developed 'Georgia DDS Checklist and was named the 2021 Congressional App Challenge winner by Congressman Hank Johnson.
Patel is one of the 7,000 students across the country who competed in the challenge and the winner of the challenge in the 4th Congressional district of Georgia.
The winning app is designed to prepare teens or others visiting the DMV to obtain a Class CP, Class C or Class D license.
The Snellville teen drew on his own experiences taking the driver's test when he created the app. Patel said he wanted to simplify the DMV process after hearing about friends' experiences.
"I had heard from a lot of my friends how difficult that can be," he said. "So I really wanted to make sure that that process was as easy for me and all other people as possible."
The U.S. House of Representatives officially launched the app competition in 2015; this nationwide effort allows students to compete against their peers by creating an app or game for mobile phones, tablets or computer devices.
The annual competition was created to encourage students to learn how to code by creating their own apps, a skill that Patel is using to solve real-life issues.
"I recognized that computer science was a great way for me to look at issues in my own life and see how I can solve those with computer science or how I can extend that to other people," Patel said. "I eventually landed on something because I was about to become eligible for my driver's license, it was an app that would help people with that process."
The app will be featured in the nation’s Capitol building and on http://House.gov. To view the winning app, click here.