After an impressive finish last year, the Robotics team is pushing full throttle towards their season with eyes set on a trophy at nationals this December. And, they are beginning the school year with a new collaborative game plan.
“Last year was our best year to date,” robotics teacher Timothy Thomas said. “We finished fourth in the country out of 80 teams. And a lot of the people that have been around for four years are now seniors, and they want that trophy.”
With their first competition being on Nov. 8, the team is preparing for a type of robotics competition format that challenges their critical thinking under an enormous amount of pressure.
“You’re given a challenge and you have about a week to decide how you’re going to meet that challenge, how you’re going to score, or how you’re going to maximize your scoring,” Thomas said.
One of six captains in the entire team, Sabrina Taylor helps guide the team through these competitions by reviewing the past season’s mistakes and correcting them, such as inefficiencies in coordination and directives.
“We make sure [the team] stays on task and we give the new people tasks to do, because that’s a big issue,” Taylor said. “For example, last year there were a lot of new people who didn’t know what to do.”
Last year the team faced difficulties in planning and time organization under the strenuous time crunch of the robotics competition style. This year, however, the students are actively working against this challenge by planning out their competitions ahead of time.
“Last year, we finished our engineering notebook, which is a step by step explanation of how we got our designs for the competition, at 1 a.m., and the competition started at 7 a.m.,” Taylor said. “So we’re making sure we’re on it from the get go.”
Apart from a competition perspective, the robotics team hosts a center for a strong and cohesive community, joined together through a shared passion.
“Our team spirit has really grown along with our general bonds as a team,” Taylor said. “There’s a very strong community feel. And as a part of that, we’ve come to work together a lot better in terms of our team synergy.”
Defying an infamous stereotype, the team encourages a diverse amount of people to join, no matter their interests or personalities.
“It’s a very prestigious program that I believe a lot of people view as ‘only nerds can participate,’ but a lot of newcomers or new people are able to learn new skills that are very valuable to the team. It’s a very inclusive program,” sophomore team member Holden Dean said.
For most newcomers to clubs, there can be an awkward tension until they feel accepted. However, in robotics, the amicable culture pushed by the captains helps draw in young members.
“The community has been very, very, very welcoming,” Dean said. “I feel very happy to come to practice. I feel it’s energetic. Everyone is calm when they work together, and there’s collective amazing teamwork.”
The collective energy in the team sets up high competition outcomes for the year, especially after last year’s impressive finish.
“I’m really excited to see where we can get,” Taylor said. “I think I have big expectations for this year. And that feeling of [being] in the competition. Working as a team effectively, it’s the coolest thing ever, being able to look back and see all that you’ve done.”
Watching the robotics team flourish since 2009, Thomas has learned that the team represents much more than just preparing for competitions.
“The most rewarding thing is just seeing kids do stuff that they’re passionate about,” Thomas said. “So seeing them find a place, I’ll call it an after school home, is rewarding because they meet new people, they get to try out new things, and they get to do things that are relevant in the real world.”
