Robotics Team's Work Pays Off!
Categories: High SchoolMarch 7, 2025
Last weekend the Robotics Club traveled to Falmouth to compete in the Southern Maine Regional Robotics Tournament. They competed against 30 other teams and their robots in this year's First Robotics Competition: Reefscape. After a full day of qualification matches, on Sunday they were chosen to be a part of the fifth seed alliance which won in the semifinals. They earned awards for making it to the finals based on their robot, driving, and teamwork. Additionally, the Safety Captain secured the 15th consecutive Safety All Star Award, given out each day of competition. Meaning our team won both days.
The team also was recognized for the highest award First gives out, the Impact Award. It is given to the team that best exemplifies the mission of First to inspire greater levels of respect for science and technology, as well as encouraging more of today’s youth to become science and technology leaders. It recognizes not only the engineering work students do but the impact they have on their community at large. This award is given to only one team at each competition that is a role model for all others, as decided on by all of the judges. The students wrote an essay about why they should get it, presented some of it to a panel of judges, and answered questions about their work. Throughout the competition, other judges stopped by to further question members of the team. The team's work to advocate for STEM education at the state level, offer STEM nights at local schools as well as the Western Maine Play Museum, and mentoring of Middle School LEGO Teams were among the reasons they earned this honor.
The points earned by making it to the finals and winning the Impact Award secured a place for the team at the New England Regional Championships in Massachusetts in April. At the end of the weekend, they were ranked 10th in all of New England! They compete again at the Pine Tree Regional Competition in Lewiston, March 15th and 16th before New England's in April.
The team is sponsored by Foster Tech which includes students from Spruce Mountain and homeschool communities. It is free for all to participate, including travel costs.
