IEEE-HKN Marks 120th Anniversary With Hackathon

Among the many events that marked the IEEE–Eta Kappa Nu (IEEE-HKN) honor society’s 120th anniversary last year was its first international hackathon. Organized by a group of 10 HKN students and led by recent graduate Christian Winingar from the Gamma Theta chapter at Missouri University of Science and Technology, in Rolla, the hackathon required more than seven months of planning.

The idea originated from students who attended the society’s 2023 Student Leadership Conference to continue fostering international collaboration among the society’s chapters.

“It seemed a natural fit to organize it as a way to celebrate the society’s anniversary,” says Serena Canavero, one of the event’s organizers and the 2025 HKN student governor.

To tie the hackathon to the establishment of the society, the organizing committee created mathematical and engineering problems around saving the eight founders of HKN from those who would oppose their commitment to its foundational tenets of scholarship, character, and attitude.

“It was a valuable experience for IEEE-HKN members both at the professional and student member levels to connect with each other and to foster a community focused on problem-solving and innovation.” —Christian Winingar

“Our founders, especially Maurice L. Carr, envisioned a society that would eventually become international, as it is today, more than a century into the future,” Canavero says. “To capture this spirit, our team combed through HKN’s historical records, seeking insights into the visionary students who founded it. We imagined them facing various challenges, often misunderstood by school leaders who didn’t yet see the value in an organization dedicated to the professional growth of young, bright, and philanthropic engineers.”

The hackathon succeeded in capturing the imagination of students around the world, ultimately attracting 62 participants collaborating in 12 teams from 11 to 22 October. The students worked together to face obstacles, using mathematical and engineering principles. In the process, they learned to appreciate each other’s problem-solving approaches, how to contribute to a team, and how to surmount logistical challenges such as working across time zones.

On 28 October, the hackathon culminated with teams presenting their solutions virtually to 16 IEEE members who judged their work based on its completeness, accuracy, and timeliness. The presentation was a part of HKN’s Founders Day celebration, which included a virtual fireside chat by two eminent members and IEEE Medal of Honor winners, Vint Cerf and Robert Kahn.

These are the top five IEEE-HKN teams and their chapters:

Shockingly Efficient. Mu Nu chapter at Politecnico di Torino, in Italy; Sigma chapter at Carnegie Mellon; Mu Kappa chapter at the University of Queensland, in Brisbane, Australia; and Iota Kappa chapter at Montana State University, in Bozeman.

Light Emitting Resistor.Lambda Omega chapter at the National University of Singapore.

Thetastic Coders. Theta chapter at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

JumbosEpsilon Delta chapter at Tufts University, in Massachusetts.

Leo. Nu Theta chapter at Purdue University Northwest in Hammond, Ind.

TestEquity, a test and measurement product distributor, provided prizes for the teams. They included a gift card, a soldering station, handheld industrial and digital multimeters, a voltage detector, and multi-tools.

The organizing committee was pleased with the hackathon.

“It was a valuable experience for IEEE-HKN members both at the professional and student member levels to connect with each other and foster a community focused on problem-solving and innovation,” Winigar says.

“The international hackathon brought together motivated young IEEE-HKN engineers from both computer and electrical engineering backgrounds,” Canavero adds. “It blended chapters into mixed teams, sparking creativity and problem-solving, bridging time zones, and fostering our community at an international level. It was a testament to how IEEE-HKN empowers young leaders to dream big, enabling us to collaborate on ambitious engineering endeavors together.”

Because of the enthusiastic response to the hackathon, plans are underway to hold another one this year.