‘We knew these girls had something special' – Teenage robotics team from Co Offaly make history with their robot Agatha

Irish Independent

17-05-2025

The students from Sacred Heart Secondary School in Tullamore, who are aged between 12 and 14, arrived home from Dallas, Texas early this morning, where they represented Ireland at the world championships, the first all-female robotics team to do so.
The 'Steminists' – Jasmine Matsushita (13), Emily Thunder (13), Olivia Hoey (14), Rachel Ebenezer (13) and Alice Duffy (12) – have become robotics champions in less than a year with their powerhouse robot, Agatha Trunchbull.
Their robot, who was named after the formidable principal from Matilda, was the result of seven months of relentless work by the team.
"We knew these girls had something special,' said their teacher Aisling Bourke, who supported the team throughout the year alongside her colleague Sindy Meleady.
Agatha is programmed to compete in challenges and matches against other robots, with the team earning the opportunity to head to Texas this week.
"They're the highest achieving Irish team, to bring home the judges award – and it's the first all-girls team to go. We're very excited for them, they were brilliant,' said Ms Bourke.
She said the girls were the 'driving force' behind the work, bringing Agatha home with them after school some evenings to work on the design or the composition of the robot.
"Emily, who was in charge of the coding, used to only be able to run the code at nighttime when her younger brother and sisters were in bed,' said Ms Bourke.
"They used to carry the robot from the school to their house – they've convinced me now that we need a trolley.'
The girls would also work during weekends and midterms to get their robot to the highest standard they could.
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Jasmine was the team's lead builder, who worked on making sure the robot was solid and competition ready, while Emily, the team's programmer was responsible for writing and refining the robot's code.
Olivia led on the design of the robot, with Rachel playing a key role in the research and strategising and Alice supporting the engineering process as a builder while also focusing on game analysis.
Speaking on their way home from Dublin Airport, the girls said they feel 'amazing' in the aftermath of their achievement.
"They cannot wait to get back to Tullamore,' added Ms Bourke.
President Michael D Higgins said the team's accomplishment in reaching the world championships serves 'as a powerful reminder of the immense potential that lies in the minds and hands of our young people, particularly young girls, when given the opportunity to engage with science, technology, engineering and mathematics'.
The team will be honoured with a special homecoming event with family and friends in Tullamore today, before their school welcomes them back with an official homecoming event on Monday.
Ms Bourke said the school recognised the importance of helping students to 'open up doors to opportunities that they wouldn't get in the classroom through the curriculum'.
"They thought this was very important. We're just facilitating that which is great, to come home with such a prestigious award like we are absolutely over the moon.'