Our Calcusaver

Our Calcusaver by: MALLORY SWOPE sta writer

Our teenage years are full of firsts; first relationships, first high school football games, first time driving, first jobs, first time creating and developing an app worthy of being featured on the Apple App Store, the list goes on. Wait. What teenager has the ability to create an app let alone find the time to do it? Central’s very own Elizabeth Saunders ‘20 is that teenager. While her classmates spent their nights doing homework then cashing in for sleep, Saunders chose to forgo the sleep and worked on arguably the biggest homework assignment of her high school career. During Saunders’ eighth grade year, attending Elk Rapids schools, she decided to follow in her older sister’s footsteps and transfer to Central for the SCIMA-TECH (SMT) program. But there was one small problem. “By the time I went to apply, I learned that I was two weeks late to turn in an application,” Saunders explained. This wasn’t stopping her though. With the help of CHS SCI-MA-TECH math instructor John Failor, Saunders was able to get an interview. Her acceptance into the program opened up many opportunities, especially during her sophomore year. “For the second semester of sophomore year, the SMT student has the ability to spend the entire semester researching or developing a personal interest,” Saunders described. For her, expansion of the AP Computer Science Principles (APCSP) curriculum held personal interest. This, in combination with the “remarkable statistics of sexual violence in America,” are what led Saunders to develop an app with the potential to save countless lives. After teaming up with Elijah Cobb, a 2017 Central SMT graduate, and mentor Jim Baran, Saunders spent much of her time learning coding languages that would allow her to create an app. Saunders’ desire to create an app stemmed from the APCSP curriculum, something that felt natural to her. The process, however, did not all come naturally. Saunders endured tear-filled, sleepless nights and infinite frustration for several months until she finally had her first finished product. “My app is called CalcuSaver, an IOS app available on the Apple App Store. Essentially the app works on

photos courtesy of: E. Saunders

the idea that the user interface is a simple calculator with functions to add, subtract, multiply, and divide. However, when the user clicks the star key just above the nine, the user will enter their name, emergency contact’s phone number, and their calculator code,” Saunders said. After these three pieces of data are stored, the app can be used as a normal calculator. If and when the user is in a possibly dangerous situation, they can go into the app, type in their selected code, and an automated text message is sent to their emergency contact letting them know help is needed. Saunders, thrilled about her progress, submitted her app for review by Apple in hopes of making it readily available for thousands of people nationwide. Apple denied her first draft due to copyright infringements and visual resemblance to the default IOS calculator. Yet again, Saunders pushed through. Altering the appearance of her app so as to distinguish it from the default version, Saunders submitted for review yet again. This time, it was accepted. Saunders’ name was finally publicly tied to CalcuSaver. Well, technically Chelsea Saunders’ name for age requirements, but she felt a sense of accomplishment nonetheless. Two years later, Saunders reports approximately 15 thousand uses of her app by people across the country. “Even if only one person uses my app to get out of a dangerous situation, I would feel accomplished knowing that someone somewhere avoided a tragedy through all of my sleepless nights. Regardless, I do know that my app is being used,” she explained. Saunders was invited to a state-level ceremony where she won the Congressional App Challenge for Michigan’s first district. Along with this, Saunders was featured on radio and news stations locally and throughout the state. Through this publicity and promoting her app, she was fortunate enough to meet an audience member who donated five thousand dollars to build up an app development company. With this contribution, Saunders is able to run her company and continue developing apps that could solve global issues one day.