CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - March 15, 2018) - TechForward, the new philanthropic foundation of the Illinois Technology Association (ITA), held the second annual High School Tech Challenge, rebranded this year as Coding Combat, at the end of February.

The second annual competition was made possible through a partnership with Perficient. Over the course of two weeks, the individual based coding and programming challenge for high school students called for participants to practice and increase their technical skills for a chance to win a scholarship to assist in their education. Students registered using their school email address and built a "player" to play the online card game One Left. The top five overall high school coders each received a $500 scholarship to assist in their education. Scholarship prizes were provided by Relativity.

Over 50 students registered for the competition, developed by Perficient.

"The Coding Combat challenge was relaunched as the first program under TechForward to propel the mission of providing a fun, competitive way to get involved with STEM," said Trisha Degg, VP, Talent Programs & Operations at ITA. "This initial initiative will serve as a blueprint for successful and impactful TechForward programming going forward."

Congratulations to the 2018 Coding Combat Top 5:

1. Emily R, Niles West High School - $500
2. John W, St. Ignatius College Prep - $500
3. Parker M, Lake Forest High School - $500
4. Sarah W, Lane Technical College Prep High School - $500
5. Ben L, Jones College Prep High School - $500

About the Illinois Technology Association
The Illinois Technology Association (ITA) scales Illinois tech companies. With innovative resources that allow members to collaborate with each other, build their talent networks and elevate their local and national presence, ITA is the region's strongest advocate for fostering innovation and growth. Founded in 2005 and supporting 500-plus growth-stage tech companies, ITA has a rich history of driving business forward. For more information, visit illinoistech.org, follow @ITAbuzz on Twitter or find us on LinkedIn.