LENOVO SCHOLAR NETWORK IS OPEN TO ALL 600+ NAF ACADEMIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES TO APPLY AND WILL SERVE 6,000 NAF STUDENTS IN THE UPCOMING 2018-19 ACADEMIC YEAR
(WASHINGTON, DC) – July 11, 2018 Lenovo today announced this year’s 2018 Lenovo Scholar Network “Fan Favorite” mobile app honoree at the 2018 NAF Next Conference in Washington, DC. The winning team was chosen by online voters out of the six team finalists announced in May.
This year’s national Lenovo Scholar Network “Fan Favorite” winner, who will receive state-of-the-art technology courtesy of Lenovo, is Respirate, from the William G. Enloe High School NAF Academy of Health Sciences in Raleigh, NC.
Respirate is a user-friendly app that supplements Pulmonary Rehabilitation to provide a more accessible resource to those diagnosed with COPD and other respiratory diseases. Click here for more information on the app.
The mobile app competition is part of the Lenovo Scholar Network, a partnership that Lenovo and NAF created in 2014 to encourage greater interest among underserved high school students in STEM subjects, while enabling them with entrepreneurial and technology skills needed to pursue careers in computer science, programming and engineering. Teams from more than 100 NAF academies developed apps during the 2018-2019 academic year as part of the program, powered by Lenovo-provided ThinkPad laptops and Yoga tablets to aid in development, coding, and testing of apps.
A panel of more than 200 judges selected the six winners. Panelists included representatives from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), members of education and tech media, Lenovo leadership, and NAF corporate partners including Intel, Moody’s and Citi, as well as NAF alumni. Online voting between mid-May – July 10th determined the final “Fan Favorite” winner.
At NAF Next, each of the winning student teams presented its winning app. In addition to the Respirate fan favorite announced today, the other five winning app teams from the national competition who presented were:
• Cimarron-Memorial High School, Academy of Information Technology, Las Vegas, NV
Created to save lives by preparing users for a variety of dangerous situations and working to make the world a safer place.
• Detroit Institute of Technology at Cody, Detroit, MI
Teaches students about their bodies and makes them feel comfortable while going through puberty.
• Emmett J. Conrad High School, Academy of Engineering, Dallas TX
Provides users with a list of health, food, and educational resources close to their current location.
• Cox Mill High School, Academy of Information Technology, Concord, NC
Allows users to keep and track their pace throughout a run.
• Lee County High School, Academy of Engineering, Sanford, NC
Helps overcome fears and challenges that come with public speaking.
NAF President, JD Hoye said, “Congratulations to our 2018 Fan Favorite winner! Each year, we are greatly impressed with your efforts, creativity, and ability to problem-solve and think critically and are so proud of the results. We’d like to acknowledge all of this year’s winning teams and commend them on a job well done, as well as extend our gratitude to Lenovo for your continued support and partnership in making the national competition a tremendous success!”
“We launched the Lenovo Scholar Network with NAF to inspire young people to pursue STEM and the rewarding career opportunities afforded via technology,” said Matt Zielinski, president of Lenovo North America. “This year’s competition demonstrates very well how we can use technology, like mobile apps, to address significant challenges. We’re proud of all the teams who participated and look forward to their continued growth and contributions.”
Lenovo Scholar Network expands to serve 6,000 NAF students for the 2018-2019 school year.
In its first year, 10 NAF IT academies were invited with a goal of reaching 250 students and surpassed its goal by serving more than 400 students nationwide. As the Lenovo Scholar Network prepares to enter its fifth year, it is expected to serve 6,000 NAF students across the country. In conjunction with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) App Inventor, a project within the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab (CSAIL), Lenovo Scholar Network students have the opportunity to use MIT App Inventor to develop Android mobile apps using Lenovo devices. NAF and MIT work together to provide technical assistance to teachers in the Lenovo Scholar Network and to develop support materials for teachers using MIT App Inventor.
###
About Lenovo
Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is a US$43 billion global Fortune 500 company and a leader in providing innovative consumer, commercial, and enterprise technology. Our portfolio of high-quality, secure products and services covers PCs (including the legendary Think and multimode Yoga brands), workstations, servers, storage, smart TVs and a family of mobile products like smartphones (including the Motorola brand), tablets and apps. Join us on LinkedIn, follow us on Facebook or Twitter (@Lenovo) or visit us at www.lenovo.com.
About NAF
NAF, is a national network of education, business, and community leaders who work together to ensure that high school students are college, career, and future ready.
NAF works with high need communities to transform the high school experience through an educational design that includes industry-specific curricula, work-based learning experiences, and relationships with business professionals, culminating in a paid internship. NAF academies fit within and enhance school systems, allowing NAF to become an integral part of a plan for higher achievement at a low cost. NAF academies focus on one of five career themes: finance, hospitality & tourism, information technology, engineering, and health sciences. During the 2017-18 school year, over 100,000 students attended 644 NAF academies across 36 states, including DC and the US Virgin Islands. In 2017, NAF academies reported 97% of seniors graduated with 90% of graduates planning to go to college. For more information, please visit: https://naf.org/