Last month, members of the Capitol College Robotics Club placed second in the VEX Robotics Competition at the 2011 BEYA STEM Global Competitiveness Conference in Washington D.C.
All participating teams constructed two robots to compete in a common challenge. At this year’s competition, students had to design robots that could pick up and place numerous rings on a scoring post. At the same time, a second robot could be used to defend against rival teams scoring points.
“We had one of our robots focus on scoring, and we used the second robot as a defender because it was larger and could get in the way of other teams,” sophomore Thalida Noel said.
Judges awarded Capitol’s team second place, out of the 10-team field, for its performance, determination, spirit and robot design. Those handing out the awards were also impressed by the fact that this was the Capitol Robotics Team’s first competition since the introduction of the club.
With the experience they gained at the VEX Competition in Washington D.C., the Capitol squad now sets its sights on the World Championships in Mid-April at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Walt Disney World. At the championship, teams from across the world will bring their robots to compete and spread their passion for robotics.
About the Robotics Team
The capitol Robotics team was created last year by Thalida Noel, a freshman at the time. Her interest in robotics coupled with guidance from George Walls, robotics club advisor and director of undergraduate recruiting and admissions, have helped the team grow to 11 students.
“Students are becoming more involved with robotics earlier in high school and it was only natural that we have our own robotics club,” Walls said. “Our students are learning about robotics and engineering in classes all the time. We’ve had all the robotics technology, but never had a club until recently.”
In addition to competing in the VEX Competition, Noel recently spoke at Prince George’s Community College as part of Capitol’s Emerging STEM Leaders Program. Noel discussed her interest in robotics, what initially sparked her curiosity in the subject, and the rigors of the VEX Competition.
“I was involved with robotics in high school and when I came to Capitol, they didn’t have a team, so I started one,” Noel said. “I became interested in robots in middle school but I didn’t start competing until high school.”