Blasting ‘Uptown Funk’ from a stereo perched on Computer Science teacher Henry Vo’s shoulder, the computer science club got fired up as they threw fake $100 bills across HPE headquarters, causing funny glances from other schools.
“I felt like the main character in the movie when we walked into the building,” sophomore Ludan Alsoudani said. “Everyone else was wearing normal clothes while our team looked like a neon rainbow.”
The Comp Sci club went on a trip to Houston to compete in the annual HPE Code Wars competition which places certain themes each year, this year being ‘Drunk Office Party.’
“Vo brought tons of props for us to wear such as light-up glasses, party hats, fake dollar bills,” sophomore Celia Schaefers said. “The extra effort in dressing up for the competition made it even more fun to compete.”
This trip wasn’t just designated for the 3-hour competition – there were several activities Vo had planned for them.
“It’s more than just a reason to travel for a programming competition,” Vo said. “It is time for friends and like-minded students to spend time with one another.”
When they arrived in Houston and got checked in to their hotel, they left just an hour later to bowl and play laser tag at Main Event.
“Even though I was terrible at bowling, I loved spending that time with my team and everyone in general,” said Alsoudani.
After leaving the arcade, they ended their night with a cookout.
“It was very thoughtful for Vo to bring us halal steak,” sophomore Maria Hossian said. “Even though there were like five out of 30 of us with the dietary restriction, Vo made sure we were included.”
As the day started winding down, everyone went to their designated room as Mr.Vo called ‘sleepy time’, but Alsoudani said that wasn’t exactly what everyone was doing.
“I intended on sleeping at the latest around midnight,” Alsoudani said. “But I ended up going to sleep just 3 hours before the competition since my teammate/roommate and I lost track of time while talking about random things.”
During the 3 three hour competition the next day, Asad Rizvi said tensions were high, but it didn’t stop his team from having any less fun.
“The problems were pretty tough since there were so many conditions in just one problem so the judges kept sending back failed test cases,” Rizvi said. “So when we finally got an accepted one, we were pretty hyped.”
After the competition, Vo had planned a surprise birthday party in the building for Eddie Karcanaj and Nathan Rand as both of their birthdays were one day away.
“Mr. Vo handed me a birthday hat and I was super confused, but then everyone started singing happy birthday and it all clicked,” Karcanaj said. “It was crazy but awesome.”
Though no one won the actual competition, the computer science club won lots of raffles that were giving away free headsets, computers and monitors.
“During the competition, my computer was giving my team some trouble,” Alsoudani said. “It was as if they knew I needed a new computer when my number was called during the raffle.”
On the way back home, Alsoudani and Rizvi blasted music from the bus’s stereo system.
“It was crazy on the bus, to say the least,” Rizvi said. “We didn’t want the trip to be over so we stretched it out as long as we could.”
Even though it was only a one night trip, Schaefers said it would be an experience she would never forget.
“It was an amazing trip and more than the 3 hours of coding,” Schaefers said. “What will stick with me is the experiences I shared with people, from bowling to the cookout, to dressing up and getting excited to program.”
