WASHINGTON COUNTY, MD – February 10, 2014 – Local students from South Hagerstown High School’s Rebel Robotics and Rebel Robotics II teams and Western Heights Middle School’s WHMS Red team were awarded Winning Alliance trophies as Tournament Champions of Saturday’s Washington County VEX Robotics Competition. A three-team alliance between Washington County Technical High School’s Green team, South Hagerstown High School’s Rebel Robotics II team, and E. Russell Hicks’ Huskies-F2PNUB team was recognized as Tournament Finalists/Runners-up. The event was sponsored by the Volvo Group Hagerstown site and made possible by its many employee volunteers.
South Hagerstown High School’s Rebel Robotics II team was recognized with the Excellence Award, the most prestigious award of the competition, and Washington County Technical High School’s Green team received the Design Award for outstanding engineering and documentation. Twenty-six teams comprised of middle and high school students teams from Washington County Public Schools competed. The Tournament Champions, Tournament Finalists, Excellence Award winners and Design award recipients all qualified for the Maryland State Championship VEX Robotics Competition on March 8, 2014, in Westminster, Md.
In the weeks leading up to the event, students applied what they learned about science, technology, engineering and math in the classroom to design and build a robot that could quickly and efficiently solve specific obstacles and challenges that come with playing the game VEX Toss Up. The competition environment also taught an equally important set of skills -- communication, project management, site management and the importance of composure, because students have to learn how to lose as much as they have to learn how to win.
“We are proud to be able to showcase this program that has given local students a fun way to learn about science, technology, engineering and math,” said Wade Watson, vice president and plant manager of the Volvo Group Hagerstown site. “VEX is a challenging competition providing teamwork, problem-solving and hands-on learning experiences; we just may have brought excitement to STEM for future Volvo Group Hagerstown employees.”
“The students participating in the VEX Robotics Competition consistently exhibit high levels of enthusiasm, teamwork, and a true passion for learning and gaining new appreciation for science, technology, engineering and mathematics through robotics,” said Jason Morrella, president of the Robotics Education & Competition Foundation,
The REC Foundation runs the VEX Robotics Competition program that thousands of schools participate in around the world. The events are open and free for media, families and community members to attend. The Volvo Group’s Hagerstown site sponsored the event, covering entry fees and travel expenses for competitors.
About VEX Robotics
VEX Robotics is the world’s fastest growing competitive robotics program for elementary schools, middle schools, high schools and colleges around the world, with more than 7,300 teams from 26 countries that participate in more than 400 VEX Robotics Competition events worldwide. The competition season culminates each Spring, with the laudable VEX Robotics World Championship event, uniting top qualifying teams from local, state and international VEX Robotics Competitions. More information about the VEX Robotics Competition is available at Roboticseducation.org and RobotEvents.com.
About the REC Foundation
The Robotics Education & Competition Foundation, a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization, supports robotics and technology events and programs that aim to inspire and motivate students to advance in STEM education. In addition to operating and supporting competitions for some of the world’s leading robotics platforms and organizations including VEX, TSA and BEST Robotics Competitions, the foundation also provides program support and workshops focused on technology and professional development for educators – including the RobotEvents.com community portal website which helps promote multiple high quality programs and provides online registration and event pages for hundreds of events around the world.