Marathon Student Coding Sessions To Take Place in Four Cities

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 11/06/13

Students aged 9-22 will participate in a 24-hour event to learn about coding and experiment with demo-able projects as part of CodeDay, and event sponsored by StudentRND and Splunk, among others. Unlike other student hackathons or competitions, this one has no prizes; people take part to learn and have fun.

High school and college students from around the country will be gathering in multiple locations on Saturday and Sunday November 9 and 10 to participate in CodeDay, a 24-hour programming marathon that encourages them to "get together, make something cool, and become better programmers." The event is being put on by StudentRND, a non-profit focused on encouraging young people to get into technology. Current locations for the coding event are Chicago, Des Moines, Palo Alto, and Seattle.

Student coders work by themselves or as part of teams to create apps or games using any of several programming languages, including C#, C++, Java, Javascript, and PHP. The event runs from noon to noon, provides meals, and includes special sessions on programming and data use. On Sunday at 10 a.m. participants share their results and a team of judges chooses award winners.

Last year's winners included two games. In Running Blind the player is an explorer "shrouded in darkness who must navigate a labyrinth guided only by sound." In S.S. Halfling the player is a convict escaping from a sinking prison ship that's haunted.

Sponsors for the Silicon Valley event include Splunk, SAP, eBay, Amazon Web Services, Yahoo, and Gracenote. Other locations have other sponsors.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • open laptop in a college classroom with holographic AI icons like a brain and data charts rising from the screen

    4 Ways Universities Are Using Google AI Tools for Learning and Administration

    In a recent blog post, Google shared an array of education customer stories, showcasing ways institutions are using AI tools like Gemini and NotebookLM to transform both learning and administrative tasks.

  • illustration of a human head with a glowing neural network in the brain, connected to tech icons on a cool blue-gray background

    Meta Launches Stand-Alone AI App

    Meta Platforms has introduced a stand-alone artificial intelligence app built on its proprietary Llama 4 model, intensifying the competitive race in generative AI alongside OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and xAI.

  • three main icons—a cloud, a user profile, and a padlock—connected by circuit lines on a blue abstract background

    Report: Identity Has Become a Critical Security Perimeter for Cloud Services

    A new threat landscape report points to new cloud vulnerabilities. According to the 2025 Global Threat Landscape Report from Fortinet, while misconfigured cloud storage buckets were once a prime vector for cybersecurity exploits, other cloud missteps are gaining focus.

  • Stylized illustration showing cybersecurity elements like shields, padlocks, and secure cloud icons on a neutral, minimalist digital background

    Microsoft Announces Security Advancements

    Microsoft has announced major security advancements across its product portfolio and practices. The work is part of its Secure Future Initiative (SFI), a multiyear cybersecurity transformation the company calls the largest engineering project in company history.