Samsung Running Mobile App Academies to Improve HS Students' Math, Science Education

On Wednesday, Samsung (News - Alert) Telecommunications America launched its Mobile App Academies for high school students interested in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The purpose of the academies is to give students the opportunity to win $35,000 in scholarships for developing the best app ideas.

This marks the second year of the academies. In 2012, over 120 students participated. The winning entry was an app to facilitate response to volunteer opportunities from a student in Massachusetts.

The academies are open to juniors and seniors and will be held in San Francisco, Atlanta, Chicago, Boston, Dallas and New York City over the next six weeks.

Students will learn about mobile app development concepts and have a chance to develop applications themselves. Part of the curriculum includes insights about trends in app development from industry experts and entrepreneurs.

The top five winners will each receive a new Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone.

The top three winning entries will also receive scholarship money. The first place winner gets $20,000, while the second and third place winners get $10,000 and $5,000 respectively.

The software development team at Samsung will also attempt to develop an application based on the winning submission.

Samsung also seeks to bring the Mobile App Academy into the classroom with a 'teach the teacher' program. Potential instructors can attend a free workshop at the Perot Museum of Science and Nature in Dallas on August 1.

With mobile technology dominating the market, the need for more developers has never been greater. Assuming that participation level is about the same this year as it was in 2012, the number of potential app developers coming out of the Mobile App Academies does not begin to address future demand, but it is a great opportunity for young entrepreneurial minds to develop ideas that solve problems.