LaHood Announces Winner and Runner-up of the 2025 Congressional App Challenge

Washington, D.C. - Representative Darin LaHood (IL-16) announced today Kavi Praanesh of Dunlap High School as the winner of the 2025 Congressional App Challenge for Illinois' 16^th District. Kavi developed an application titled "MeloCognia," using Python and C/C++ as her programming language. MeloCognia is an AI powered health assistant designed to help detect Parkinson's in its early stages. The runner-up, Agrini Neekhra of Dunlap High School, developed an app titled "Febrile Neutropenia Intervention eXpert" (FENIX), which works to combat the issue of delayed antibiotic treatment in pediatric febrile neutropenic patients.

"My office has been proud to host the Congressional App Challenge for the past 10 years to encourage students in the 16th Congressional District to pursue their passion in STEM fields," said Rep. LaHood. "Each year, I have been amazed by the talent of our students and the creativity of the applications they put together to solve real-world problems and improve the lives of others. I want to congratulate this year's winner Kavi, and our runner-up Agrini, for their outstanding work in this competition and developing two incredible apps. Thank you to all the students who participated and made this year's Congressional App Challenge a success!"

"I was inspired to create MeloCognia after seeing my grandfather struggle with Parkinson's, as he wasn't diagnosed until the disease had already heavily impacted his daily life and treatment options were limited," said Kavi. "That experience made me realize how hard early detection can be and how much the delay can cost patients. MeloCognia is an AI-powered health assistant that uses voice analysis and symptom tracking to provide fast, accessible early screening, giving users a quick insight in minutes that encourages them to seek medical evaluation sooner."

"The Congressional App Challenge has given me the incredible opportunity to explore new fields. Before my app, I had never coded before and teaching myself was a great experience for me to build the skill and perseverance," said Agrini. "FENIX is an app aiming to prioritize the small details in healthcare systems that may go unnoticed and improve diagnosis and treatment times. Oftentimes, chemo patients with compromised immune systems will need to receive a straightforward antibiotic treatment. However, delivery system variability and delays can prolong the treatment process, increasing mortality rates. FENIX helps to predict that delay and alert healthcare personnel to prioritize those patients. Being named runner-up for Congressman LaHood's Congressional App Challenge is a great honor and encourages me to keep developing my programming skills to create stronger, improved healthcare delivery initiatives. I am very grateful for this program and hope that all students see coding as an outlet to make their own mark on the world."

Background:

The Congressional App Challenge is an annual competition hosted by the U.S. House of Representatives aimed at encouraging students to pursue careers in STEM fields. Since its inception in 2015, the Challenge has grown to become the largest student computer science competition in the United States.

The 2025 Congressional App Challenge set new records including:

• Largest student participation with 13,830 students competing across the U.S.
• 4,650 original applications submitted - an increase of nearly 800 from 2024
• Over 56% of this year's applications incorporated Artificial Intelligence

The winner will receive an invitation to demonstrate their application in Washington, D.C., have their application featured on the House of Representatives website, www.house.gov, and receive a copyright fee waiver provided through the Arts Act. A video link to the winning group's application can be found here.

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