GREEN BAY, WI — Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) today announced that Ryan Wagner was named the winner of the 2021 Congressional App Challenge in Wisconsin’s Eighth District. Wagner is a senior at Freedom High School and plans to study Software Engineering at the University of Wisconsin, Platteville next year.
Wagner’s app, Locked In: A Password Generator, generates random, secure passwords and then saves them to a protected PDF file for later use, thereby solving the difficult task of remembering unique passwords for a number of websites.
“I’m honored to announce Ryan Wagner has won this year’s Eighth District Congressional App Challenge,” said Rep. Gallagher. “Ryan’s password generator addresses a pressing real-world challenge by helping Wisconsinites better protect their personal information online and demonstrates his impressive coding ability. With nearly half a million open cybersecurity jobs in America, it’s great to see students like Ryan demonstrating their interest in the cybersecurity field, and shows that you don’t have to be in Silicon Valley to get a high quality STEM education.”
In a meeting where Gallagher informed Wagner he had won the app challenge, the two discussed where Wagner’s interest in technology began and the importance of encouraging more students to pursue a career in cyber.
The Congressional App Challenge is a district-wide challenge for middle school and high school students, encouraging them to learn to code and inspiring them to pursue careers in computer science. This year, Rep. Gallagher’s office received 17 applications submitted by 23 students.
As co-chair of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, Rep. Gallagher has prioritized ensuring students have the skills they need to fill job openings in the cyber workforce. Earlier this year, he met with Microsoft President Brad Smith, local business leaders, educators, and students to discuss ongoing efforts to strengthen cybersecurity in Northeast Wisconsin. The visit showcased the success local public-private partnerships have had in increasing local cyber education and protecting small businesses in the community.
