Members of the team took advantage of many great opportunities to experience STEM activities, applying math and science skills in real world tasks and challenges. Additionally, students were exposed to concepts in both business and marketing to take advantage of both funding and community involvement opportunities.
Team faculty mentor John O'Neil said the thrill of the program was watching kids work together to solve problems.
"The task of building a robot creates real challenges and problems," O'Neil said. "And over the course of weeks, the students worked together to solve them. It was fun watching the light bulbs go on as they met every challenge and got our robot ready for competition. It was definitely a learning experience, and we'll already be miles ahead when we start again next season."
Most of the team members will reassemble next school year to build upon the lessons and successes of the first year to build a better robot.
The mission of robotics clubs is explained on the First Robotics website as a program “to show students of every age that science, technology, and problem-solving are not only fun and rewarding, but are proven paths to successful careers and a bright future for us all.”
2014 Team Roster: Ryan Mizikar, Eli Giles, Anne Huston, Bryce Sabo, Tanner Smalley, Regan Thorpe, Casey Wioskowski, Jack Hurst, Josh Thrasher, Dominick Fisher, Sean Devers, Aaron Ailes, Jacob Hancox, Daniel Elyea. Coach John O’Neil. Student event volunteer Daniel Lehto. Team mentors were Dick Johnson, Mel Smalley, and Jeff Smalley, and the faculty mentor was John O'Neil.