Latest news with #FIRSTRobotics
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
All they do is win, win, win at Merrimack High School
There's nothing trivial about Merrimack High School's success, students, teachers and parents say. And it's not just the Tomahawks' tenacious trivia team that triumphed for the first-ever three-peat in the New Hampshire high school TV quiz show 'Granite State Challenge' and dynastic fifth title in six years. The dominant big brains and talented students fan out over multiple avocations and disciplines. The Music Department had 19 All-State musicians and singers this year. The FIRST Robotics team recently made it to the World Championships, their third time in four years. The Science Olympiad team placed third in the state for its STEM expertise. Excellence is clearly not mutually exclusive at MHS. There's plenty of crossover and cross-pollination. Success begets success for kids in multiple specialties. Take for example, Erin Murray, a senior who captained the Granite State Challenge team this year and was on the team that won the title last year. Murray has also been selected for the New Hampshire Music Educators Association All-State Festival two years running as a vocalist. 'Honestly, at this point, I think we've created a culture around winning. Every year that excitement, that winning excitement rubs off on everyone else,' Murray said last week after the watch party for the Granite State Challenge championship on New Hampshire PBS. Tim Bevis, a senior captain of the FIRST Robotics team, known as Chop Shop 166, could've been on the Granite State Challenge team or perhaps even an all-state soloist as well, but there's only so much time in the day, he said. For him, the secret to Merrimack's success is dedicated teachers and an it-takes-a-village mentality that empowers students. 'The thing that it comes down to, from my perspective, is the teachers and mentors in those positions,' Bevis said. 'Dr. (Sara) Campbell, who runs the Granite State Challenge team, is incredibly dedicated to that and she passes that down to her students. Mr. (RJ) Beck and Mr. (Brendan) McWalter in the chorus and band department are incredibly dedicated to their job. And the students and the mentors here are incredibly dedicated to us (on FIRST Robotics).' Chop Shop 166 has a network of alumni, friends, parents, teachers and former coaches that continue to come back year after year. For the music department, this year has been especially rewarding with nine students making the All-State Festival for concert band, three students being selected for the orchestra, two students making the treble choir and five students making it onto the mixed choir after auditioning. 'A big part of our success is how strong our middle and elementary school programs are, especially our middle school band director, Holly Levine,' said Beck, the chorus director and music teacher. Last week, Merrimack Middle School's Levine was named the Outstanding Band Director of the Year by the New Hampshire Band Directors Association. McWalter, the high school band director, credited flexibility in the teachers' schedules to provide opportunities for real, one-on-one instruction and deeper individual lessons. He also praised the painstaking work of their predecessors, Patricia Cunningham and Ken Dugal. 'This program didn't just all of a sudden get here. We had teachers before us that really worked hard to build this program to where it is today,' said McWalter, who is in his second year at MHS. 'It was a long build.' School Board recognition The FIRST Robotics team was honored at last week's Merrimack School Board meeting, and Everett Olsen, the district's chief educational officer (superintendent) summed up the success of those students and other groups in the public school system. 'Sometimes taxpayers will use the terminology 'return on investment' and tonight was a prime example of the investment paying off in terms of some of the most outstanding students in the country right here,' Olsen said. School Board members said they will continue to honor the achievements of other student groups at upcoming meetings, but the list is long. Musical chops The All-State musicians at Merrimack High School include: Caoimhe Boyle Latzko, Rachael Cirillo, Ian Desilets, Jamie Halvorson, Leah Jobin, Paige Mason, Hikari McDowell, Colin Plumb and Dave Sharma. Plumb was also accepted as a tenor vocalist. McDowell and Sharma achieved the top scores for the tenor and baritone saxophones, respectively. Sean Jalbert, Ben Ricks and Owen Sabens made the All-State orchestra. Among the singers, Ava Lanier and Erin Murray were selected for the treble choir. Adelina Camerlin, Emmy Hartwell, Ben Pittman, Tristan Plumb and Simon Yasevich were part of the All-State mixed choir. Scientific swagger This was one of the most successful years in Chop Shop history with the team earning four medals and one blue banner. This year they won the Impact Award, the Engineering Inspiration Award, and finished as Event Finalist, twice. The team set new records, and were part of the winning alliance at the World Championships. Junior Laura Bevill of the FIRST Robotics team said the 'secret sauce' in Merrimack comes from the students pushing each other and being able to showcase their many different talents. FIRST Robotics has something for just about everybody from STEM skills to project management, communications and marketing. 'It's really about the ambition of the students,' she said. 'It takes a team to make something this good. It takes the efforts of every single person on this team to make something work.' Bevill said the best part of FIRST Robotics is the diversity of what students can learn. 'It's really all the opportunities you get, that fulfillment of just working and seeing what you put in can be put out right back to you like a boomerang, and being able to see the progression of people growing and gaining skills,' Bevill said. 'Being able to go from anywhere, from marketing standpoint to learning how a robot works.' For upcoming events or to learn more about Chop Shop 166, visit Unchallenged champs Led by teachers Campbell and Liz Dumais, the Granite State Challenge team doesn't rebuild, it reloads. Merrimack holds the GSC records for most championships (five) and most appearances (24) in the tournament. The Tomahawks easily dispatched the Tilton Rams, 570-310, in the championship, which aired May 15 on NHPBS but was taped in January. It was a tough task for students and parents not to let the news out until the final show. But that's become part of the routine and a running gag by Campbell, senior Maeve LaRock said. Every year Campbell has to hide her trophies for a while behind a poster with a different saying each year. This year, it read, 'Not a Trophy 5: Merrimack Strikes Back.' 'Everybody said, oh it was a rebuilding year for us. Yeah, it was a completely new team and I was completely new. I was excited to just go and do it all. Of course, there was a lot of pressure, but I was like, 'I'm going to do this. Let's go win,'' LaRock said. A senior, LaRock is also vice president of the Student Council and a former field hockey and lacrosse player. She plans to play rugby at the University of New Hampshire next year. Her best friend, Erin Murray, also had a little pressure on her shoulders in her second year on the team and as captain, and not just from her peers, from her own family. 'I have an older brother who was on the team for two years before me, and I have a younger brother who will hopefully be on the team next year. So, we have a little bit of a legacy going on,' Murray said. Campbell credited the kids' commitment to putting in the work, even one things like making sure they can buzz in faster than other teams to answer questions. Virtually no detail is too small for MHS to practice. 'It's the kids. I don't know if you noticed, but two of my kids who we were just celebrating, they're cleaning up now,' Campbell said after the team's championship watch party at the school. 'They asked where the broom was so they could clean up. That is entirely them and their parents. I have a little bit to do with it, but they're pretty much fully formed when they get to me.' Overall excellence Campbell said she's regularly amazed at how dedicated the kids are at MHS, and not just for Granite State Challenge. 'The students who have that work ethic tend to get involved in more than one thing, because they have a lot of passions. So they find those things that they love, and they get super-involved in all the things that they love,' Campbell said. 'I had a student one year who had the Science Olympiad, FIRST Robotics and a Quiz Bowl thing, all in one weekend. It was state-level competitions for all three. By the end, he was a little fried, but he was that involved and invested in all three of those things.' dpierce@
Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Milford robotics team ends season, looks ahead to next year's competition
MILFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — A robotics team from Milford is pausing national pursuits to make sure their robot is ready for the spotlight. The FIRST Robotics team is comprised of students learning engineering and problem-solving skills. Connecticut's best 'bots compete in 1st robotics competition of the year The team competes for awards while honing technical skills and creating a team identity. 'At the start, we prototype, make stuff that we think would work well after we get our challenge, and then we just come together, we share all of our ideas, and then we start making stuff that we think would work well,' said Travis George of the FIRST Robotics Team. The team is disappointed to pause their season, but they are excited for next year's competition. ' The team made it to playoffs in each of our three events, including at the New England District Championships,' said Kristopher Seluga, lead mentor of Milford FIRST Robotics Team. 'We were part of the Number one alliance, we were one match away from getting to the finals at District Champs, and the team also qualified to go to the world championship this year.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cass County students aim for world championship in robotics competition
A crowd gathered in the bleachers of Center Grove High School's auditorium Friday afternoon to watch some fierce competition. It wasn't a moment of basketball-induced Hoosier Hysteria, though. The crowd was there to watch the Indiana State Championship for FIRST Robotics. Winners would go on to compete at the World Championship in Huston, Texas, where they'll likely go up against (or align with) teams from all over the U.S., as well as international teams from places like Israel, Australia, Canada and Mexico. Among the teams vying for a shot at the world championship was Wreckless Robotics, composed of Logansport and Lewis Cass students. At the beginning of each match, robots have to move autonomously. After the first few seconds, human drivers are able to take over. Points are scored by placing pieces of PVC pipe on a tiered frame (with more points awarded for pieces placed on taller tiers) and by placing a 16-inch diameter playground ball between the tiers or tossed into a net that hangs above the field. Just before the match ends, teams are able to score more points by hanging from a cage on a chain. Going into a lunch break Friday, the Cass County team was ranked 25th, with one win and two losses. The first game back, shortly after 3 p.m., the robot spun into action during the automated period, immediately placing pipe on the highest rungs of the tiered, coral-shaped frame. With 90 seconds left, the robot got a piece stuck in one of its mechanisms. Instead of fretting about the mishap, the drivers steered the robot to prevent the opposing alliance from scoring more points. As the game wrapped up, the Wreckless Robotics creation was able to hang suspended off the ground. The victory lifted the team to 19th place, with more opportunities to climb further in the rankings. By 5 p.m., the team had secured a ranking in 12th place. Data compiled by teams across the world predicted the Cass County team would finish the state competition in eighth place, meaning it would qualify for the world championship. Just before loading the team's robot into a bus headed for Greenwood on Thursday, the students were optimistic about their chances at the state championship. Scott Loman, a Logansport senior on the robotics team, explained the team seems to do better at each new competition. During the first competition, he explained, the team had a few communication hiccups with other teams. Each match sees a three-team alliance face off against another three-team alliance. Leaders at the competition get to choose who will be in their alliance, so communication with other teams can be crucial. 'The issues weren't necessarily from us, but working with other teams,' Loman said. 'The first one's always a little rougher on the edges, because you still have to figure out what the other team's bots are capable of. By the second one, we know generally. And especially this one coming up, we know what the other teams are capable of.' The Logansport team's robot, though, had remained sturdy at competition. It won the Quality Award last weekend, meaning the robust build didn't have any problems. That doesn't mean there weren't problems during the robot's development though. For instance, the mechanism that lifts the robot at the end of each match broke twice during the robot's development. The destruction sheared rivets off the robot's arm. 'We've actually got battle scars from when we smashed the intake in,' Loman said. 'But because our robot is so durable, we've been able to take those and walk away.' Many of the students have been on robotics teams since at least middle school. Several of the team members, such as eighth grader Ben Adams, are still in middle school. Adams remembered going through dozens of iterations for one component before finally figuring out how to make it work. He said it was 'very relieving' to get the final mechanisms installed. 'I don't know about the other guys, but being able to build the robot is a lot of fun,' Loman said, explaining why he's been on robotics teams since fifth grade. 'Going through all the failing and then doing it again because we test out different ideas.' The senior noted several pieces of bent steel and aluminum that marked modifications to the robot's climber. 'Trying it and then finally succeeding with it was so much fun,' he said. Another senior, Michael Popson, seemed to agree. 'I just love robotics as a whole,' Popson said, later explaining he's stepped away from other hobbies to prioritize robotics. 'It's my No. 1 activity.' 'The thing I love about robotics is in a world where everything shows you … everything's got to be perfect — you've got to do the perfect this, perfect that — robotics show you just the opposite,' one of the team's mentors Matthew Snoeberger said. 'Your imperfections are what make you better.' While the team does fairly well at competitions, Snoeberger, it could use a bit of help from the community. Motioning around a cramped Logansport High School classroom where the team meets, programs the robot and tries to test it, he explained the team doesn't have enough space to practice for competitions. Instead, the team travels to a facility in Kokomo every now and then for 10-hour practice days. 'If there's somebody who has any warehouse space around that wants to give us part of it, that's our big need right now,' he explained. 'A lot of teams either have a full field that they're messing with, or they have a half field they're messing with.' The Cass County team will continue to vie for a spot in the world championship on Saturday. A livestream can be found online at
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Students in New England compete in robotics championship at Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield
WEST SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – The grounds of the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield were taken over by robots on Friday! This is a day filled with excitement and innovation. Hundreds of high school students from New England are putting their STEM skills to the test. The FIRST Robotics competition brings together 96 teams from all over New England to compete in a series of matches. These teams spent months designing, building, and programming their robots to go head-to-head. Local teams like Discovery PolyBotz from Discovery Early College High School in Springfield came out to participate. 'It's nerve-wracking, but it's so exciting. I'm so excited to keep on playing and being part of the team and coming back,' said Discovery Polybotz team member Heyssi Rosario. Other teams, like Rosie Robotics from Agawam High School, are also making a return. 'It's an amazing atmosphere. You know, you look around the room, you think these young people in the room with me are going to be the world leaders in the future,' said Rosie Robotics team member, Tim Rua. This year's match is called 'ReefsCape'. Robots compete in mechanical challenges on a seabed like stacking PVC pipes, which represent coral on a reef, picking up exercise balls which represent algae, and tossing them into overhead nets until time runs out. Many of these robots are designed by students like never before, they include AI, vision, and camera systems This competition aims to increase the number of students interested in STEM subjects- science, technology, engineering, and math- and influence their career and educational choices. 'As somebody who wants to be a mechanical engineer in the future, like making the parts for the robot. It helps me give me an idea of what I want to do for my future,' said Discovery Polybotz team member, Arianela Elfakih-Rua. This experience will not only benefit them in their future careers but also contribute to the advancement of robotics technology. Saturday is the day of the competition, and the teams will learn which awards they won. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Teamwork key to 4C Academy Robotics team's success
ALBANY – The 4C Commodores Robotics Team took home the Engineering Inspiration award while qualifying to advance to the next level of competition during its first outing of 2025 at the Peachtree District Qualifier. Competing against approximately three dozen teams from across the state, the Commodore Conyers College and Career Academy students not only showcased their technical prowess but also secured the coveted award, which recognizes their outstanding efforts in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within their school and community. The FIRST Robotics Competition, an international program designed to inspire students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), challenges teams to design, build and program robots to complete complex tasks. This year's event brought together some of the brightest young minds in Georgia, and the Commodores rose to the occasion through their enthusiasm and innovation. During the competition, the Commodores demonstrated teamwork, engineering skill and strategic thinking, earning them a spot among the top performers. Their robot, meticulously designed over weeks of intense preparation, performed flawlessly, embodying the spirit of FIRST's core values of gracious professionalism and cooperation. The Engineering Inspiration Award, one of the most prestigious honors in FIRST Robotics, celebrates teams that go beyond the competition field to inspire others and promote STEM education. The Commodores earned this recognition through their efforts to engage their local community, including mentoring younger students, hosting workshops and partnering with local organizations to expand access to STEM opportunities. Their initiatives have not only strengthened their school's engineering programs but also fostered a broader appreciation for engineering as a force for good in Albany and beyond. 'We are incredibly proud of our students' hard work and dedication,' Commodores head coach Darren Hagler said. 'Winning the Engineering Inspiration Award is a testament to their commitment to not only building a great robot but also building a brighter future for our community through STEM education. This achievement reflects the spirit of FIRST and the values we strive to uphold.' 'We can't thank our partners enough for their investment in our school and in our robotics program,' 4C CEO Chris Hatcher said. 'Their support, which includes financial, mentorship and simply their encouragement, has allowed us to build a program that not only allows us to compete at a very high level in FIRST Robotics, but more importantly, provides students with the skills and experiences to prepare them for their careers. We are truly grateful for their partnership in inspiring the next generation of STEM leaders.' As the team prepares for an Albany event scheduled Friday and Saturday at the Albany Civic Center, 4C officials said it remains focused on the mission of empowering the next generation of innovators and problem-solvers. The Civic Center event is free and open to the public, and the Commodores strongly encourage the community to come out and support their local team. For more information, check out team_6919 on Instagram, or search for Team 6919 or Commodore Robotics for more updates.
