From left to right: State of Hawai‘i Chief Information Officer Christine M. Sakuda, Alex Hann, and Christian Villados; not pictured Grant Garrison.
Hawaiʻi Pacific University computer science students, Christian Villados, Grant Garrison, and Alex Hann, prevailed at the 2024 Hawaiʻi Annual Code Challenge (HACC), winning third place in the college division of the annual competition. The ambitious group, known as Team CGA in the competition, rose to the challenge with their innovative solution to the Hawaiʻi AI Concierge Bot Challenge at the finals held on November 16, 2024, at UH West Oahu.
“The outstanding efforts of HPUʻs Team CGA earned them an impressive third place and a $1,000 prize,” said Mary Smith, Ed.D., Associate Professor of Computer Science. “I am so proud of Christian, Grant, and Alex. The teamʻs HACC win showcases the power of their technical skills, creativity, collaboration, and determination.”
The 2024 HACC competition began in mid-October with 41 teams in three categories, high school, college, and professionals from industry. HPUʻs Team CGA joined 17 other teams chosen to present their projects at the November 16 finals, resulting in nine winning team projects.
HACC, initiated by former State of Hawaiʻi Gov. David Ige in 2015, is a multi-week hackathon designed to modernize state services, enhance civic engagement, and build Hawaiʻi’s IT workforce. By encouraging collaboration between community teams and state agencies, HACC produces sustainable solutions that support state needs, foster professional growth, create local jobs, and strengthen Hawaiʻi’s innovation ecosystem.
Hawaiʻi Pacific University is pleased to support the HACC, serving as a partner in the competition. The HACC aligns with HPUʻs educational goals and objectives to provide hands-on, real-world learning experiences for its students and foster relationships with community organizations and leaders. The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree offered by HPUʻs Department of Computer Science & Engineering is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET.
