| Contact:
Beth Stefanik
Director of Communications
434.296.5106 (o)
434.282.4371 (c)
bstefanik@stab.org
www.stab.org St. Anne's-Belfield School to Host Second Annual Hackathon for Regional Teens Charlottesville, VA, Oct. 13, 2016 – St. Anne’s-Belfield School announced today that it will host its second annual hackathon for regional teens in January. SPARK will again be a two day event, this year taking place January 28 and 29, and will be open to high school students across the area. “Last year we were able to host 45 students from seven area schools,” said Zach Minster, co-coordinator of the School’s Computer Science Initiative. "It was an amazing weekend that led to ten final projects including prototypes of wearable tech, live websites, app interfaces, and more. This year we hope to accommodate 65 students and I know I speak for everyone involved when I say we can't wait to work with them." Like last year's inaugural event, SPARK will include a full day “learnathon” of workshops and interactive presentations on Saturday led by local technology professionals and designed to inspire students to create technology. Adult mentors will also be on hand to guide students, and sponsoring organizations will share real world problems for which they would like students to consider solutions. The second day will be the hackathon, time dedicated to collaboration and work, either on their own projects or on one of the problems brought forth by a sponsoring organization. Teams will present to a distinguished panel of judges at the end of the day. “Last year two of our hackathon participants, Leela Ghaemmaghami and Clara Duffy, refined their ideas for their Seniors Connect business and went on to be the youngest-ever winners of the Tom Tom Festival's Crowdfunded Pitch Night,” said Kim Wilkens, co-coordinator of the School’s Computer Science Initiative and Tech-Girls founder. "We are so excited to provide this unique opportunity for high school students throughout the region to get connected to industry experts and other students who are passionate about changing the world through technology." SPARK will be free of charge for students accepted to the program, though overnight accommodation will not be provided. The application deadline is December 16. For more information and to apply to the event, visit http://spark.stab.org. ## St. Anne’s-Belfield School is a co-educational preschool through grade 12 day school of more than 900 students and 120 faculty and staff, with a boarding program in grades 9 through 12. More than 20 countries are represented in the student body, with 38% of families receiving financial aid. More information may be found at www.stab.org. | 
