The FIRST Robotics Competition took place February 1-2 on the Kent State Campus, bringing 28 teams of 7-12-grade students to compete in a head-to-head robotics challenge.
The College of Aeronautics and Engineering (CAE) hosted the Rover Ruckus “Deep Space” themed- event which requires participants to design, build, program and operate robots. See 2019 winners here.
Top five teams from the competition include:
- Trial and Error from Aurora High School,
- CMS Robotics from Horizon Science Academy Cleveland Middle School & Horizon Science Academy- Cleveland Middle School,
- Loose Screws Young Innovators' Society,
- Undefined from Solon, OH and
- NDCL Robotics Notre Dame Cathedral Latin School from Chardon, OH.
Adult coaches and mentors assist students they develop STEM skills and practice engineering principles (like keeping an engineering notebook), while realizing the value of hard work, innovation, and sharing ideas.
The robot kit is reusable from year-to-year and can be programmed using a variety of languages, including Java. Teams also must raise funds, design and market their team brand, and do community outreach for which they can win awards. Participants have access to tens of millions of dollars in college scholarships. The CAE is eager to welcome FIRST to campus next year.